Ups and Downs
by Yojimbra
Summary: After graduating U.A. and becoming a pro-hero Izuku finds himself just going through the motions of life when his high school sweetheart ends their relationship until he crashes into a blue haired girl with endless optimism and curiosity. Izuku x Nejire Post-canon, they're adults, whether or not they're functional is up for debate.
1. Chapter 1

It was hard to blame her. Harder still to be mad at her. What she asked was realistic, but still felt so very impossible. They had been just friends before. It shouldn't be so hard to go back.

Maybe it was his fault. He should have asked her to wait for things to get settled. Wait for both of them to be ready, instead of trying to be ready. How different would things have been if they waited a year? Or two? Or three? Would the result still be the same?

He stumbled ever so slightly on the rooftop, giving him a view of the city. The lights looked less vibrant than he remembered. Almost like the whole city was choked in a dull unending grey smog. But pollution on that scale was a thing of the past. The stars were out as well, what few could be seen in the bright city still shined brightly.

Mars stood out to him, that fast-moving light that was darting towards the horizon. It was one of the few that she pointed out to him, ever since then he'd been able to hone in on the planet.

What time was it? Probably closer to when he was supposed to start his patrol than end it. Had he gone twenty-four hours? Again. He looked at his phone, dead battery, was probably for the best. It would stop him from texting her and seeing that same 'seen' message appear.

Right, friends. He couldn't blame her. Only himself, his last few messages had been lengthy essays on his feelings and pleads for nothing in particular. He would have ignored him too. It wasn't how an adult, let alone a hero should act.

"Bah," He groaned, running a hand through his hair; it was slick, greasy, and rough. A reminder that he hadn't showered in... a while. He was on patrol to try and not think about it. Lot of good that was doing him, he was used to thoughts of her bringing a smile to his face, now they robbed him of what little happiness he could scrounge up.

"No! Stop!" A scream tore through the night. "My purse."

Where was it? Close, almost like he was right on top of it. He looked down into the alleyway, it almost felt like something out of a comic book. A woman was being robbed right below him. It was her lucky day, and the thugs unlucky day.

He landed right in front of the man, no, it was more of a boy, dressed in all back clothes clutching onto the bright pink purse like it was his life's savings. It was partially for show, and partially his own weariness, but he let the would-be robber crash into him, sending the thug tumbling to the ground.

"Oh fuck!" The boy looked up at him with a face full of fear, scrambling backward. "I'm sorry Deku, sir- please don't smash my face in I didn't know that-"

"That I was on the rooftop?" It was hard to be filled with righteous justice when it was just some poor kid making a bad choice at night. But they were often the most dangerous criminals out there. Arrogant, full of themselves, and willing to use their quirks. But this boy was just afraid.

Probably because he wasn't smiling.

He should probably fix that. "How old are you kid?"

"Fourteen Deku-sir!" He squeaked, still back peddling, the purse forgotten.

"There's already enough criminals in the world, don't you think?" He scooped up the purse, mustering up the best smile he could. It felt awkward and foreign, had he forgotten how to smile properly? "If I let you go with a warning are you going to try and rob someone again?"

The boy stuttered, stammered, and nodded his head. "No sir! I won't!"

"Alright, then, head home, study for school." He helped the kid up with ease.

The moment his feet hit the ground the boy was off running. Hopefully, that was the last he saw of him.

"Deku!" The woman, ran up to him smiling, her skin - or rather her fish scales - shined in the city lights. She smiled at him, straightening out her work outfit and tucking a bit of her salmon hair behind her ear. "Oh wow, I guess even top heroes like you stop small crime huh?"

"It's actually most of what we do," although, a purse theft like this was mostly pure luck and was better left to the police. He just happened to be in the area. And desperate for a distraction, it wasn't that he wanted a crime to happen, the best nights were the ones where the uneventful ones. "Here's your purse back ma'am."

"It's a shame you're taken." Salt in the wound. The woman sighed, placed a hand against her cheek, shaking her hips. "Otherwise I'd love to take you out to drinks, oh well, say hello to Uravity for me!"

He nodded, trying to keep the smile up. A task that was growing increasingly difficult. "I will, take care, ma'am. And have a great evening."

He was on the roof before she could say anything. A humming ventilation system served as his only support, the metal cool against his forehead.

They never went public with their relationship. Even when they were still in U.A. But, they weren't secretive of it either, and the public eventually began to notice, especially as his own fame began to grow. Soon there were tabloids about them as a power couple. It made more than a few interviews awkward. The public hadn't quite become aware that they were no longer a couple.

It was easier to ignore it. At least in theory. Or maybe he was just keeping his mouth shut in hopes that they wouldn't need to be told.

Besides, she could tell them, no doubt she was going to have dozens of interviews in the upcoming months. And they were bound to ask questions about their relationship, they always did. It was why he hadn't done any interviews recently.

It would be smart to go home and rest, he'd already done enough today. But he'd have nothing to do at home. He'd lay in his bed, staring at the ceiling thinking about her. Maybe he should install a dating app on his phone or something. Or just degrade himself to what Mineta tried to do and shamelessly flirt with any single stressed out office worker he saved.

Wait, that was a terrible idea, he had morals and sucked at flirting. All Might was single all his life, so there was no reason why he couldn't. Aside from a pain in his heart that reminded him that he was alone.

"One more crime," he pushed off the ventilation system, stretching and taking in a lung full of the crisp night air. "Or sunrise." whichever happened first. Or he could pass out.

With a running start, he was able to achieve a pseudo form of flight, in a straight line. A few of his old costume variations even had gear that allowed him to maneuver, but it was to easy to damage, to difficult to use, and just didn't do enough. Mei had said he'd be better off just jumping or running everywhere, it'd be quicker than gliding.

And really the only time that maneuvering in the air would be a good thing was in pursuit of a flying villain that he could blast out of the air, or in case there was another airborne entity in his path.

Such as right now.

"Watch out!" He saw them almost too late, someone using their quirk to flat through the air. He braced for impact. Wait, that was bad, if he crashed into them, they'd fall and it might be more fatal for them.

"Woah!" It was a woman.

Gold like the glitter of distant stars surrounded him, covering his field of vision, and engulfing him in a soft bubbly force that left him feeling like he was floating. He knew this quirk, and he knew the person that had this quirk, but he couldn't remember who it was.

"Whew, that was a close one!" She said once again.

When he opened his eyes he saw a spiraling golden tail emerging from his legs, the force of which was all that kept him from free falling. He followed the trail to its origin. Long hair that was the color of a cloudless sky, sparkling blue eyes, and a smile that was filled to the brim with eternal optimism. A well-proportioned beauty in a skin-tight suit

"Nejire?" He hadn't seen her in what felt like years, at least not in person. She was away during the last official hero ranking, but she was planted as the number seven pro-hero. Somehow, she still looked exactly like she had in U.A.

Somehow her smile grew even more. "Oh! Izuku!" she buzzed around him like a hummingbird inspected a feeder. "Long time no see, how are you doing? Fight any crime lately? What are you doing up here? How long have you been able to fly, wait that's a stupid question, you probably jumped didn't you. Oh, wait, Hi!"

She was still the same as always. Infinitely curious, and full of questions.

"I'm doing well, but uhh, do you think we can talk on the ground? I don't want to wear you out." He gestured downward, it wasn't that he didn't trust her ability to keep him afloat, more that he didn't trust his ability to stay awake if he wasn't moving.

"Oh, don't worry about me! I still got plenty of stamina left after all. I bet I could even go a few more hours if I wanted. But what about you, do you normally patrol this late? Do you live nearby?" She began to float towards the ground like she was adrift on a meandering river and he was her passenger. When both of their feet were firmly planted on the ground she looked up at him, her blue eyes reflecting the night sky of the city around them. "Woah, you got tall. I remember when you were barely taller than me! How tall are you now?"

"You haven't changed at all Nejire," He laughed, a hand resting on his stomach. He began to walk, and she followed after him with a bounce in her step, hands behind her back. "To answer your questions, I'm six foot and some change, I have an apartment nearby, and I sometimes patrol this late. What about you?"

"Oh!" It was cute how her head bobbed when she did that, her blue eyes were forward and she kept smiling straight ahead. "Well let's see, I haven't grown any taller since U.A. I actually just moved to this area too, and I'm actually just about to call it for tonight until you crashed into me that is."

She stuck her tongue out, swaying from side to side like she was bursting with energy. "But if you're still on duty I'll join you!"

"I was about to turn it in soon, just a few more blocks and then I was going to head home." Technically a lie, but it was actually what he should be doing. And now he was actually starting the feel his fatigue setting in. Or maybe it was just Nejire's energy making him aware of his lack of energy. "But what brings you out to this area?"

"There was a super pretty apartment for rent here!" She twirled on her feet as they rounded a corner. "And because there were so many other heroes in my city, I decided to change location! That and change is good every so often and moving is kind of fun."

"And a bit exhausting."

"Gah, that reminds me I still have stuff I need to unpack." She whined, somehow even her pout looked happy. "So, do you always run solo?"

"Most of the time yea," it wasn't from lack of applications to his office, but it was more his general lack of an office. "I used to be part of an office, and I still join them sometimes. I'm trying to get my own office up and running."

"Oh! That's something I've been thinking about doing too." She laughed a sweet sound that was as bubbly as she was. "Kind of sad that two of the top ten heroes don't have an office huh?"

"Yea, but it's a lot of work,"

"And that you feel you can do more work without an office?" She chimed in elbowing him in the side ever so slightly like she was unearthing some dark secret of his.

All Might didn't really have an office if anything he worked out of Sir Nighteye's office once the later graduated. But he wasn't really trying to be like All Might, it just kind of worked out that way. "You're not wrong, that and I can't really imagine myself having a sidekick."

"Oh! Idea!" Nejire twirled around in front of him, her smile bursting like a supernova of positivity. Her blue eyes were sucking him into her excitement. "Since we live in the same area, we should go on patrols together! We can even be partners! That and our styles match up well, you're a short to mid-range and I'm a mid to long range so we'd sync up pretty well."

She pulled at the green part of her costume. "Plus our colors already kind of match, I'm sure it'd be a lot better than going solo. What do you say? Wanna be my partner? Pretty please!"

It felt like it was impossible to say no to her. He had no reason to refuse her, it had been standard for Top heroes to team up for years now, and the public certainly enjoyed whenever a new partnership was announced. "Sure, it sounds like it could be great."

"You bet it'll be great!" She cheered, floating up in the air with her quirk. She pulled a phone out of somewhere, tapping away at it. "Let me give you my number! We can text! And fair warning I use a lot of emojis."

"Oh, my phone's dead, how about I give you my number instead?"

"Oh! That works!" She twisted in the air so that she was upside down, her long hair nearly touching the ground.

Once his number was in her phone she shot up into the air twirling like a circus performer before diving down in front of him once more. "Awesome! We're now unofficially official pro-hero partners! That means you can't block me no matter how many random things I spam at you, just in case there's something super serious."

"Don't worry, I'll be sure to keep you unblocked, I'll even favorite you with a bunch of random Emoji as your name once I charge my phone." He stretched popping his neck and letting out a mighty yawn. His lack of sleep was finally catching up to him. "But that'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"Oh, right, right, good plan! I'll message you tomorrow, well technically today, and I already messaged you. But anyways, I'll see you tomorrow Izuku!" She began to float away, she flopped onto her back looking at him with one leg over the other, her long hair chasing after her like a comet's tail. "Wait, do you want a lift home?"

"Nah, I'll be fine," he waved her off. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay! Ahh, I'm so excited about this that I might not be able to sleep," She gasped in mock horror, her speed increasing as she righted herself. "Alright! Later!"

"Bye!"

It was only when he lost sight of her did he realize he was smiling.

 **AN: Welcome to my Izuku x Nejire fic! I had this idea and it just needed to come out! And I love it! Love love love! And I hope you all do as well! For the record Izuku is 20 in this fic.**


	2. Chapter 2

It was easier. At least he thought it was, it certainly felt like there was less dragging down his thoughts. He spent less time staring at his shoes this morning than he did the previous day, and he spent even less time staring up at his ceiling waiting for his thoughts to be... Normal, if normal was the right way to describe it.

He ran a hand through his hair that was a few weeks past needing a haircut and was starting to get ridiculously long. It was a miracle that he kept up with shaving. He stepped out into the bright midday sun and felt its warmth as though for the first time. He had an hour before he was supposed to meet Nejire and go on patrols.

When was the last time he'd go on Patrol with someone? Even when she was around they rarely patrolled together. Was that time with Hanta really that last time he'd actually patrolled with someone? Guess it was. When did he become so anti-social? Since middle school probably.

It wasn't that he didn't have friends, it was just that they were all busy and he didn't really bother reaching out to them.

Nejire probably had a lot of friends, and even if she didn't have any nearby she was bound to make some, it was just the kind of person that she was. A cute bubbly girl that wanted to know random things about people was bound to have a bunch of friends. It'd be nice if she stayed around, and they went from Unofficially Official Partners to Official Partners to, something more.

"Something more?" He paused standing on top of a random building, hand resting on some power supply or some other type of metal box. What did something more mean? Dating? A relationship? It was easy to imagine a life like that, with Nejire running up to him and - No, he really shouldn't be thinking about stuff like that. He still wasn't over her. It wouldn't be fair to Nejire. Even if she helped him get over her.

Besides, she probably wouldn't be interested him like that.

He lept down from the building, using his hand to guide and slow his fall so that on the off chance he did hit somebody then it'd be little more than a bump. It was still faster than walking, less awkward, and he could get the drop of villains; All Might, did the same thing.

And it wouldn't be healthy! This was going to be a professional and friendly relationship, that it, nothing more nothing less. She was not going to be his rebound, or whatever it was called.

"Oh! Izuku! You're here!" Nejire beamed at him, the last time someone had been that happy to see him again was when he visited his mother. She was dressed in her standard hero uniform, that skintight uniform that was a range of soft teals and deep blues and the focusing bands around her wrists that made her look just as bubbly as her personality. "I'm glad you got the address I was starting to get worried I gave you the wrong place! Oh hey, you want some tea? Or maybe some coffee, this place is great!"

But, maybe, if she helped him get over her, then that would be okay.

"Yep, I managed to find the address in time somewhere under the Emojis." He flopped his arms, not quite sure what to do with them. The building that was their meeting spot was a cafe built into one of the side roads with some french sounding name that Yuga would probably be able to tell him. It was small, packed, and the scent of roasted coffee permeated the air. "I didn't take you for a coffee drinker."

It was the kind of place that would make for a good date.

Nejire took a gulp from her cup that was made more for sipping, squirming as the liquid wormed its way through her body. She stroked the cup like it was a lamp that would grant her every wish and held it close to her cheek. "It is my one weakness in life!" She gasped, pushing the cup away like it was a snake about to bite her. "Oh no, my weakness is exposed, don't let any villains find out about it!"

"Actually it's just Jasmine Tea, I'm trying to find the best place nearby that has it. Can you imagine me with Coffee? I'd probably be in orbit or something." She spun, putting her smile back on that never quite left, and sat down at the small table once more. "Do you want anything? What's your favorite thing to drink? Is it tea? What kind of tea! Oh, wait, is it green tea? Must be because of your hair, wait that doesn't make sense."

"I actually prefer Oolong tea," He sat down across from her, the chair felt really small and so did the table. This wasn't a date, this was just a meeting, he wasn't ready to try and do something like that, just tea, and a nice cafe with an attractive girl that was happy to see him. He took a breath, this wouldn't work if he kept analyzing everything like this. He was, in theory, a professional, one of the top ten.

"Ooooohlong! That sounds really good, and grassy like your hair," she paused tilting her head to the side, "Speaking of hair are you growing yours out?"

Before he knew it a tall dark haired teen with glasses had placed a cup of fresh Oolong in front of him. Apparently, he was having Tea. He tugged at one of his bangs, now long enough that when straight he could bite it. Once he let go it instantly resumed its Natural position somewhere on his head. "Uhh, not really, I just haven't gone to a barber in a while."

"Oh me neither," she brought out a strand of her long sky blue hair and placed between her mouth and nose so she had a mustache that would belong on a Kung-fu master. "It's a lot of work keeping my hair this long but I love it."

"It looks good on you," He sipped from his tea. It was good, really crisp and sweet. And then his words hit him. "Not that you wouldn't look good without it, because you would, but I mean that is that I umm. It suits you."

"Thanks! Oh! Wait! You should let me do your hair! It'll be fun, we can even call it team bonding. Oh, I know exactly what kind of haircut you need." She gasped hands over her mouth, with a whole sky's worth of stars in her eyes.

On the downside he'd, well, he'd, uh, he'd probably end up saying something stupid around Nejire? On the plus side, he'd be spending more time with her which meant less time to wallow on stuff. But he, well. Why was he being so afraid of this, it wasn't the first time a girl he knew did his hair, it probably wouldn't be the last. There was nothing going on between them, it was just friendly.

"If you want, I wouldn't mind."

She stood, her tea-cup fully empty as was his. "Really awesome! Normally only Mirio would let me do his hair and he always wanted the same goofy style, and Tamaki was well Tamaki. You can even see my apartment once we finish our patrol."

"Tonight? Won't your roommates get mad?" He placed what he hoped was enough money on the table to pay for his tea, and stood with her.

She crinkled her nose and snorted, head back, chest out hands on her hips. "Please, I don't have any roommates, do you? Cats don't count."

"Nope," He flapped his arms offering a half-hearted shrug. "I've been living by myself for over a year now."

"Oh look at you Mr. Responsible Adult." She waggled her eyebrows at him, "We can go to my place after our patrol, it'll be great!"

"Sure, sounds like a plan." It took him two seconds to realize that meant that he was going to be alone in her apartment, late, when it was dark, alone, with her, when it was dark. No, no, no, it didn't mean anything, she was just being friendly, and he was just being back. There was nothing romantic or sexual about it, nothing to be nervous about.

"Alright! Now let's go!" She spun cheering.

"Uhh, Pardon me." An older bespectacled man with slick black hair and a well-trimmed beard that ended in a hook stood in front of them. He rocked a pink dress shirt with the first two buttons undone under a black apron. To his right was a shorter girl with glasses and orange hair that couldn't quite meet them in the eyes wore a similar apron, and to his left was the glasses wearing youth with frizzy black hair that had no problem meeting his gaze. "You're two of the top ten heroes, Deku and Starburst, right?"

"Yep, that's us," He gave a small bow that they returned. No matter how often he did it, interacting with fans, admirers, critiques, and people that looked up to him it was always unnerving. Still, it was part of what being a hero was about. "You have excellent tea."

Technically the same could be said for customer service.

"Yea! It's great! Is there anything we can do for you?" Nejire beamed, both hands behind her back.

"That's great, I'm Sojiro Sakura, and this is my daughter Futaba," He ruffled the girl's hair, then pointed towards the boy. "And I'm his caretaker, and I was hoping that you'd be willing to take a picture with us."

His daughter pulled out a phone, one of the newer models holding it out to them, her face was red. "Please! It'd mean a lot to me!"

The silent youth nodded as a black and white cat jumped onto his shoulder like it belonged there.

"Oh, well I umm," Nejire took a half step back, she kept her smile up but there was something off about her, she grabbed her hands and her mouth moved but few noises came out.

"I won't be using it for advertisement or anything," Sojiro said waving his hand, smiling with the charm that only someone that had spent years not giving a shit in customer service could muster.. "We'd probably just hang it behind the counter, or if that's too much in our living room."

He stepped forward placing a hand on Nejire's shoulder. "Sure, we only have time for one photo though," Probably not the best lie considering how they just wasted ten minutes drinking tea. "But I'll be happy to take a picture with you guys, Nejire you want to do the honors?"

The smile in her eyes came back and she jumped into the air, her feet not touching the ground again. She zoomed over snagging the phone from Futaba. "Oh sure, I can do that! Woah, this is the newest model! The camera is so clear!" she floated back over to where she stood moments ago holding the phone sideways. "Alright, now everybody give me your best victory pose! You to Mr. Kitty-Face!"

All five of them, cat included, gave a V for victory, he was putting that All Might smile he had spent countless hours practicing in the mirror on to good use. It wasn't quite as inspiring, not like All Might's was, but it was his own smile now. One that would hopefully inspire kids the same way that.

"And done!" Nejire hovered over to the girl, handing her the phone gently. "Thanks for the tea!"

"Come by anytime! And next time have some Coffee and Cury!" Sojiro beamed with pride. "And best of luck on your patrol today."

They said their goodbyes and left just fast enough to make sure that it looked like they were in a hurry. He felt bad for the lack of honesty, but something wasn't quite right. She looked normal and was smiling like she had been the whole time. Like he didn't see some shred of fear minutes ago. Maybe he was just looking to far into it or.

He felt her tug on his glove when they turned a corner. "Thanks for that Izuku."

Or maybe he wasn't.

"No problem," He smiled, mostly for her, and scratched the back of his head. "I can understand not wanting to have your picture taken all the time."

"Yea," her voice and smile drifted, "All the time."

XXXX

"Would you stop moving so much?" Nejire turned his head to the side as her scissors sniped at random bits of his hair. A lot of his hair had fallen off already. How much more was she going to take? "Your neck has more muscle in it than some people do in their whole body. Have you ever tried benching with it?"

He blinked, moving his head down when she pushed on him, now working wonders along the back of his neck. Normally when people touched him there he'd tense up. But this was different, her soft touch combined with the scissors felt good, like a cold towel after a hard workout. "Bench with my neck, why?"

"Because that way you could see how hard you could hit someone with your head." She hummed assaulting his neck with a towel as she continued to snip at him. "Wait, that might be a bad idea, your quirk used to hurt you right?"

"Oh, uhh I out grew-that." took him long enough, but now using One for All was like breathing to him. But that didn't mean he was going to go risking his neck for no reason. Well, not his actual neck. His metaphorical neck was always on the line.

He looked around Nejire's apartment for the umpteenth time, it was the kind of place that just looked expensive, the kitchen was nice, modern, and equal parts pure white and stainless steel, while still not looking like it was an industrial complex. An empty fish tank acted as a barrier between the kitchen and the dining room, the entrance was nice too, with a large window and even a comfortable fireplace. Scattered about on nearly every wall and corner was some kind of a plant that could survive thanks to the large windows that would likely let in a lot of daylight. It was also on the top floor, which was generally a bonus.

"You were right, your apartment is cute,"

"Thanks! I'm so happy I finally found someone I can show it off to! Almost make up for how much it costs." she snipped around his ear seemingly at random. He could feel the cold night air of her kitchen and the random spurts of her breath on the now nearly exposed flesh that went around his head. It still felt like he had a lot of long hair on top of his head, he could still feel some of it touching his forehead, but his sides felt nearly shaven.

"Umm, Nejire?"

"Yes?" she nearly sung the word, still casually snipping away. Was he going to be bald? He didn't look good bald, his head was shaped funny and people might mistake him for a monk! And he liked his hair! "You have great hair by the way! It's so soft and easy to work with, what shampoo do you use?"

"Nothing special, but umm, not to rush you, but are you almost done?" He flinched when he watched a large chunk of hair fall from his head. That wasn't anywhere nearby where she was cutting a moment ago!

"Yep! Just let me," she ran a comb through his hair and then her fingers. Now that was something else, it reminded him so much of when she used to do the same thing. But it was different, so very different in a way that he couldn't quite describe. Maybe he just liked having his head played with. "Do some finishing touches. And then,"

She stopped, staring at him with wide eyes and her mouth slightly open. "Oh no?"

"Oh no? Why, oh no?" It didn't sound good, did she give him a bald spot? Wait, did he have a bald spot, a natural one that had been growing hidden under his tangled mess of hair from all the stress he'd been through recently?

"Oh second! Don't move!" She bolted, behind him, she took three steps before the vague humming noise of her floating filled the air. "I'm serious! Don't move! I just need to! Oh where is it? It has to be somewhere in here! Come on! I'm a girl for crying out loud! It's" There was a scream and something falling, "I'm okay! And I found it!"

She came floating back into his vision holding a small mirror that didn't point at him. She didn't have the look of horror he would have expected had she actually messed up his hair, rather it was just another one of her smiles.

"Why'd you say Oh no?" He was still worried.

"Oh," she turned the mirror and handed it to him, her smile drawing his eyes more than his own reflection. In the dull light of her kitchen, she squirmed in the air, her hips swaying from side to side in a way that was positively hypnotic. "When I said that I meant to say, 'Oh no, I made you hot."

"Hot?" His face certainly felt hot. She thought he was attractive enough to say he was hot? Wait, now he was hot, but before he wasn't? What was he before? Did his hair make that big of a - he looked into the mirror - oh. His hair was still long on the top but the sides and back were kept short, really short. It looked good, really good, it was neat but also tidy. "Wow, this looks great Nejire."

She puffed out her chest, beaming at him as her feet touched the ground. She spun the scissors on her finger. "See! I told you this would be great! I'm glad you like it too!"

"Yea, thanks, I know who I'll be going to for my next haircut. Uhh, that is if you're okay with cutting it again?"

"Sure! It was fun!" She spun around grabbing her phone from the counter and held it up towards him, bouncing from foot to foot. "I wanna take a picture and send it to Yuyu! She'd be so jealous, can I?"

He nodded giving her a victory v and smiling. "You can even post it to facebook if you want."

Her shoulders dropped the slightest amount. "I uhh, don't have a facebook, but I can send it to you then you can."

"Oh, uhh, I haven't used mine in a while." He didn't even know why he wanted it on there. To show to others that he was happy, or to show himself. "But if you send it to me I'll be sure to send it to my mom."

"Right!" A few taps of her fingers and his phone buzzed, and his photo was surrounded by hundreds of various emoji's that he didn't even know existed.

To say the silence that drifted between them was awkward would be a lie, it was the kind of silence that made itself known but didn't intrude upon the mood, merely reminding him it was there. It was late, closer to sunrise than sunset, though he didn't feel even remotely drained. Not like last night.

"Well, uh, I should be going, especially if I want to wake up in time to meet up with you again tomorrow." He scratched the back of his head, feeling the sensation of how short his hair was back there. "Wait, we are meeting up again right?"

"Yea! We're partners after all!" She cheered, bouncing into a flex. "I can give you a lift if you want!"

"No, that's fine, I actually kind of want to see if I can make it to my apartment with one jump." She actually lived a lot closer than he thought, close enough that if he pushed himself and the winds were could he could probably end up on his own roof with a few jumps. One jump would be showing off.

Nejire's face lit up even more at that, she followed him outside, all but skipping with every step. "Oooh! I want to see this! Let's go! I'll text you our meeting spot tomorrow, or you can pick the spot!"

"You pick, I actually don't know of any good places around here, unless you want a cheap beef bowl or want to go grocery shopping?" He really needed to work on his variation.

"Hmph, well that's no fun, I guess I'll have to pick our meeting spots, but you should show me the beef bowl place! I haven't had one in a while! Is it good? Do they have pork? Where's it at? Ahh now I want a beef bowl." She held her cheeks wiggling as she walked.

He laughed stepping out of her apartment and lining himself up for his jump. "Sure, well I'll see you tomorrow Nejire."

"Bye!"

Three running steps into a leap and he was off. His cheeks hurt from smiling. 

**AN: It's hard to start writing chapters for this story, but once I start it's hard to stop. I adore writing this. To those worried that I might be rushing Izuku's feelings, I'm actually putting a lot of my own personal experiences into this in terms of the post-breakup but still friends blues (not right now), and you know, a cute girl smiling at me helped me, so it might help a fellow nerd like Izuku.**

 **Thanks for reading! See you next chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

His phone buzzed then began to blast his ringtone, pushing off sleep just enough to wake up, then slam back down on him. He twisted in his bed, the pale sunlight drifting in through the blinds and into his room, his clock said that it was seven, a full hour earlier than he would normally wake up, two hours earlier since he started doing those late-night patrols with Nejire.

Who was calling him so early? It wasn't his emergency tone, that one he would already be out of bed for. The only person that normally called him was his mother, and she normally waited until noon. Glaring at the number, he tried to fight off the the warmth of his bed and the chill morning air that seemed to permeate his apartment; he only vaguely recognized the number, he really should mark it as a contact.

"Hello, Izuku Midoriya speaking." He tried and failed not to sound like he just woke up.

"Ahh, Izuku, did I wake you? Sorry." Somehow the voice on the other end sounded twice as tired, but he recognized it instantly.

"Aizawa-sensei!" He sat up, eyes wide and fully awake like he had just been called on in class. "I'm awake sir!"

"You're a pro now Izuku, you don't have to call me sir." He could all but here the lethargy through the phone. "You're doing well out there, but listen, I need to ask you a favor."

A favor from his former teacher? Was this some kind of a super secret mission that would change the fate of the world? No, that was the sleep talking, if that was the case Aizawa would have been at his door. "What is it Sensei?"

"Well, it's time for the training camp, which means I'm going to be out of town for a few days, and Mirio just started teaching as well and he'll be going. So I don't have anybody to watch Eri." His sensei groaned, "Not that she needs to be watched but she asked if she could spend the weekend with you until school starts up, she keeps complaining that she hadn't seen you in a while."

"You know you can give her my phone number? I wouldn't mind."

A growl came over the phone, "Yes, but that would require giving her a phone."

Still the same denial that he was her adoptive father while being overprotective it seemed. Nice to see some things didn't change. "Do you want me to pick her up or?"

"She can ride the train to your district, but if you can pick her up at the station that'd be great." The sound of papers falling followed by a sigh came from the other end. "I'll text you the time and location in a bit. Thanks."

"No problem, I look forward to it."

He stared at his phone after it ended, blinking at the end call screen. How was he supposed to watch a ten-year-old girl for a weekend? What was she going to eat? Sleep? Watch? Do?

XXXX

Nejire didn't so much as walk to the beat of her own drum, so much as she danced to the symphony of her own orchestra, something that extended into their patrols as well. Fun wasn't really something he considered when he was doing his job, but Nejire proved that it was possible to do both easily, mostly because she was so enthusiastic about everything that he was started to dance along to her symphony.

"Woah! Izuku-Izuku!" He wasn't sure if she said his name twice or just moved so face he caught her own echo. The helix of her hair chased after her as she darted, spun, and glided in front of him, her feet barely touching the ground. She really did look like a human comet in the dull streetlights that covered the latter half of their patrol.

An innocent magazine stand was her target, the individual running it was some teenager that looked like she'd rather be anywhere else as she tapped on her phone like that was her job. Nejire swiped up one of the magazines and flashed it to him.

He recognized the title instantly as one of those trashy tabloid magazines that had nothing better to do than to over analyze the lives of pro heroes, he'd been in a few issues, well a lot of issues especially since he was in the top ten, and stopped really caring over a year ago. But it was the cover that made his heart sink.

"Look! You're on the cover! I think they're talking about your hair!" She gasped her smile brighter than the street lights.

He sighed stepping over to get a better look at it. What was it this time? The last one he read had an article about him being All Might's son in it. "What's it say?"

"Oh," Nejire's smile faded she looked between him and the magazine, her shoulders slumping and making her look all the smaller. "Do you not want me to read it?"

"There's no harm in it, besides I'm a little curious why I'm on the cover, that's never happened before." It was an action shot of him darting through the night sky his reflection cast on the reflective windows of a skyscraper. It looked almost professionally done and looked like an old All Might photo that was in the daytime, he probably still had that photo in storage somewhere. "What's it say?"

Nejire coughed, deepening her voice so it sounded like a marshmallow trying to sound tough. "Pro Hero Deku has a new Haircut?" The roughness vanished and she smiled, pointing at his head. "Oh hey! The haircut I gave you made the news! That's awesome! Oh, wait what well does it say!" Another cough and she was in character again. "And a new love life? What happened to his fling with Uravity?, and why has our mean green crime-fighting machine been spending so much time with a certain fellow top ten contender? Find out more on page six."

Huh, he blinked looking at the words. This was the first time he thought about her today.

"I had this haircut for less than a week! And we've only been partners for a week, do these guys really have nothing better to do?" He sighed, rubbing the spiky hair just above his ear and stretching.

"Is Uravity your girlfriend?" Nejire asked placing the magazine back on the rack like it was a spoiled fruit she no longer wanted. She then gasped. "Oh, no have I been stealing you away from Ochaco? We've had so many meals together! I need to apologize to her!"

"Actually, we broke up about two months ago." That was easy, was it supposed to be that easy? He couldn't even admit it to himself a week ago. Maybe it was just because Nejire was so blunt that he didn't have any choice to answer. It still kind of hurt, but he could bear it.

"Ohh, phew, that almost gave me a heart attack." She deflated, then perked right back up, her eyes glued onto his and drawing him in like two blue-black holes. She grabbed both of his hands and began to shake them up and down. "You're okay, right? Do you need anything? I helped Yuyu through a few breakups before so I know what to do. Wait you're a guy. Uhh, I don't suppose you want your nails done do you?"

Her hands were soft and warm despite the chill night air.

A laugh escaped him, one from the bottom of his stomach and his soul and made his whole body shake. "I'm fine Nejire, I'm fine. It happened a while ago and it wasn't a bad break up. We're still friends."

"Oh, well, that's good! Now I don't have to feel bad about stealing all your time with patrols!" She dropped his hands and spun, placing both hands behind her back. "Well, not the breaking up part, but it's good that you're not letting it bother you."

She took a few steps forward, walking less like a hero and closer to a drunken sailor with the way she swayed with her own imaginary waves.

"You want to know why don't you?"

With one foot on the ground, the other stuck out at an odd angle so she looked like a statue on a fountain. Twisting her heel she moved to look at him still stuck in that same pose, lips puckered like she ate a lemon. "Maybe a little bit, but you don't have to tell me, I know those things kind of suck to talk about."

"She got a job offer in a different city," He sighed taking another step towards her. This was okay, it was healing, a sign that it wasn't bothering him, he was in a way, getting over it. "We tried to do the long distance thing, and well, I guess she lost interest." He scratched at the back of his head, feeling the line where his hair went from long to short. "It sounds worse than it really was."

"Ahh, that sucks!" Nejire slouched to her left, "I mean are you guys still friends so that's good, but why'd she move? What job?"

"I never really found out, I think it was called Stellaris, and she was doing something with her quirk, it paid more than being a pro-hero." He really didn't pay to much attention to her during that conversation, he was trying to wrap his head around everything. "I can give you her number if you want to ask her."

She bit her lip and shook her hands, followed by her whole body before she smiled at him. "That's okay, as long as my underclassman is happy I think I can put off asking her a billion questions over the phone."

"You sure?"

"Yep!" she popped, bouncing next to him. "I'll have you know I can direct my curiosity at other things, specifically one person that I want to know everything about! It also helps for investigations and-"

A flash of light.

The earth shook.

Panic tore through the tranquil night.

"Nejire!" He was already running towards the pillar of smoke that was born from the explosion.

She was in the air. "I'll scout it out! You start rescuing!"

"Right!" He lept into the air, jumping over the growing crowd that was running from the sounds of death and chaos. Was it an accident or an attack? There were still reports of Nomu popping up but it had been a while. Regardless, saving the civilians was the priority.

XXXX

"Ouch!"

"Quit fussing!" Nejire dabbed his cheek with the ointment once more, a scowl on her face as she pressed him harder than necessary. She was in no better shape than he was just a few burn marks and a cut on the cheek from glass, but despite their wounds, they managed to get nearly everybody out of the building before it started to crumble.

"Why are you the one doing this anyway?"

"Cause its fun!" She reached into the first aid kit she had obtained somewhere and placed a simple bandage on his cheek. Despite the soot on her face, her smile was still twice as bright and pure as ever. "There now you look even manlier. Now you just need to learn to scowl then you'll be all set!"

"Besides, they're pretty busy." She spun, standing next to him and nodding to the emergency responders that were already tending those that needed it most, the firefighters were still working on putting out the fire, it was contained for the most part.

Things like the death count and cause would be announced later. It depended on the newspaper, but most would report the number of people saved, one of the worthwhile ones had arrived a few minutes after the firefighters did.

"Should we leave before the reporters realize we're still here?" He was only half joking, he understood that talking to the news was the best way to keep the public calm, but it was still his least favorite part of his job. But at least now he'd be able to smile in front of the camera and mean it.

"Huh? You mean you were going to stay?" She ran a hand through her hair making a disgusted face. Her hand came out covered in soot that she quickly wiped on his shirt, it really didn't change anything. "Guh, I need a shower. Or a nice long bath, with lots of bubbles. And a foot rub. Do you know how to do foot rubs?"

"I could try, but why do your feet hurt? You were floating most of the time."

"Hey, you should know kicking butt all the time is hard on the feet." Somehow it was hard to take her serious when she put on such a serious expression. Then her smile came back and she laughed at her own joke. "Wow, I need to write an apology for that one."

A news crew was heading their way, one he vaguely recognized from the last major incident, it was a pretty blond reporter, and her cameraman that looked somewhere between a good for nothing punk and an alright guy. He gave a stretch feeling his neck pop and then let out a groan. "Well, we can't have a terrible joke like that on the news so I'll talk to them."

"You sure you don't just want to flirt with the pretty looking reporter." She gave him a wink that was three parts cute, one part sexy, and two parts awkward. "I'm joking, but I'll see you tomorrow, the same time right?"

Right, tomorrow! He almost forgot to tell her about Eri! "Actually I need to take the day off tomorrow, Eri's coming-"

"What? Eri!" She was up in the air spinning around and doing flips before righting herself upside down, way to close to his face. "Little Eri the one that you and Mirio rescued? With the horn and the white hair? Our little Eri?"

"Yes?"

She gasped letting out a half scream, half squeal with both hands on her cheeks, her long blue hair nearly touching the ground. "Eri's coming and you didn't think to tell me! I haven't seen her in forever!" She did a flip grabbing both of his hands and putting on her best puppy dog eyes. "You have to let me hand out with you guys! Oh! We can have a movie night at my place! And do a bunch of other fun stuff! Please, Izuku!"

"Sure, it sounds like fun." That and he had no idea what he was supposed to do with Eri.

"Yay! Ahh, I'm so excited now! Oh right, reporters! Uhh, I'll text you later Izuku! Have fun!" She darted towards the crowd of rescue workers, someone bright and cheerful like her was great at keeping people calm.

The blonde haired reporter didn't so much as wait for him to motion to her before she started. "This is Ann Sakamoto with the Channel five news here with the number four top hero Deku, who had just charged into a burning building…"

He could have sworn her name was Takamaki last time.

 **AN: I had a hard time with this chapter, but then it just kind of clicked. Anyways. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and you look forward to the Eri chapter next week! It's going to be so fluffy!**

 **Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

The whole station rattled so hard that his shoelace began to untie itself, the low screeching of the breaks reverberating off the walls as the train came to a stop. Lines of people stood exactly where the doors would be once it came to a stop, the station was crowded, even for a Friday morning after rush hour.

A pair of hands pressed down onto his shoulders followed by a woosh as Nejire jumped up to try and see over his shoulder, despite it being far easier to just lean to the side and look at the train. "Is," She landed, then immediately jumped up again, this time hanging in the air as she balanced on him. "Is that Eri's train?"

"It should be," He looked up to see Nejire looking down at him, her usually straight hair was held back in a high ponytail that moved and bounced twice as much as she did. It was his first time seeing her in casual clothes, and it was something else. It was a tight red casual dress thing that looked like someone had combined a shirt with a skirt that ended above her knees.

He found himself staring more than he cared to admit. 

"What are you doing?"

She beamed, her blue eyes shining like a cloudless spring day. "I'm going to surprise Eri! She's going to coming running up to you going 'Izuku!' then I'm going to appear and go 'Eri!' and then she's going to go 'Waaah!, Nejire!' and then we're going to do a bunch of fun stuff!"

The train doors opened and Nejire dropped down behind him, still keeping her hands on his back.

"So you're hiding behind me?" He asked, scanning the crowd looking for a silver-haired girl with a horn exiting the train. It had been nearly a year since he last saw Eri in person, but he knew without a doubt he'd be able to recognize her. It was just a matter of seeing her in the crowd.

He felt Nejire pat him on the back. "Yep! You're tall and big! The perfect mobile hiding place."

"Izuku!" She darted out from the crowd, an overstuffed bag bounced from side to side threatening to take her with it. In many ways, she was exactly how he remembered her, a bright cheerful little girl with red eyes, long silver hair, and a single horn that stuck out from above her right eye.

Eri slammed into him, burying her face into his stomach as she squeezed as she tried to squeeze the life out of him with a monstrous hug. "I missed you!" She pushed away and pulled at her shirt still smiling up a storm. "Look! Look! Emi got me this! It has your face on it!"

The picture on her shirt was a cartoon version of his logo, a smiling green rabbit with a silver mouth and black eyes, it was supposed to look like his hood, that hadn't been a part of his costume for years. "Yea, it looks cute on you."

Nejire jumped out from behind him, holding her arms out to the sky. "Eri!"

"Waah!" Eri's mouth fell open as the shock was enough to make her match Nejire's pose. The shock only lasted a second before she ran over to her into an equally bone-crushing hug. "Nejire!"

"Oh my goodness I haven't seen you in forever! How old are you now? How tall, how tall? Has your horn gotten bigger? Is it really tied with your quirk? Do you have a boyfriend? Any crushes? How's Mirio?" Halfway through assaulting Eri with questions the dull humming of Nejire's quirk began to drown out the surrounding clutter of foot traffic. Naturally, she took Eri up into the air with her.

"I'm ten, four and a half feet, It might have, yes it does, eww, no, and now, and he likes teaching!" Somehow Eri managed to keep up with the barrage of questions all while laughing, as Nejire spun them around. "But why are you here?"

Nejire landed after a moment, "Well, Izuku and I have been partners for a while so when he told me you were coming I forced him to take me along, and now we're going to have an awesome weekend together! First, we're going to go buy some new super cute swimsuits, then we're going to the water park, then we're going to go to my place and have a movie slumber party sleepover!"

"We are?" He asked, scratching the back of his head.

"Yep! One of the people we rescued from the fire runs the place and gave me some weekend passes!" she spun pulling out a couple of tickets. "I wanted to surprise you guys so surprise! What do you say? Sounds fun right?"

Eri spun towards him her smile filled with a wonderful curiosity that was impossible to crush even if he wanted to. "Can we go Izuku! I've never been to a water park! And everything else sounds like a lot of fun! Please?"

There really was no saying no to that. "That's fine with me, but I don't have a swimsuit."

"That's why we're going to go get swimsuits first!" Nejire bounced over to him, fluttering with her every step like a feather on the wind. She grabbed his arm and pulled him towards Eri. "Me and Eri need you to judge and make sure our swimsuits are super cute right?"

"Yea!" Eri wiggled between them, taking one of each of their hands. "We can even pick out Izuku's swimsuit!"

"Oooh, that sounds fun!" Nejire hummed, leading their group out of the train station.

"So, are you guys partners like Dad and Emi are partners or partners like Dad and Present Mic are partners." Eri looked between them with wide eyes waiting for their answer that was growing harder to find by the second.

He looked towards Nejire, hoping that she would have the answer for him, instead she was just smiling, waiting for him to answer! What was he supposed to say?

"Uhh, we're just, uh, we're work partners we go on patrol and stuff. And friends!" That was it. That's all they were. That's all either of them wanted to be. Simple as that. Nothing more.

XXXX

"Well, Izuku? We're waiting for our answers."

"Yea! What do you think?"

His brain must have short-circuited, that or he was starting to develop blackouts from one to many hits to the heads because one moment he was waiting for them exit the dressing room trying to ignore the looks he was getting from the other - female - shoppers. Then before he knew what was happening his mouth was open and he was staring at Nejire's, uh, well her everything.

It wasn't even risky, or even skimpy, it was just a simple white two-piece swimsuit with frills on it and a skirt for the bottom. But it still showed off a lot of what Nejire had to offer. And she had a lot to offer. She had always been beautiful, even when he first met her years ago, but she always presented herself as something closer to cute than sexy, now, she was a deadly combination of all three.

"You," He swallowed, having to turn his head to tear his eyes away from her. His face felt hot, hotter than it had been in a long time, just how bad was he blushing? She had to notice it, what was she thinking about it? He looked back at her. Bad move, she was smiling, one finger on her cheek with a single blue eyebrow raised, eyes sparkling with enough mischief to be put in detention for six school years. "You look great Nejire."

She smiled all the more, closing her eyes with a head tilt that was far too cute even for someone like her with both hands behind her back. "Thank you."

"What about me!" Eri jumped in front of Nejire, spinning around to show off her swimsuit, it was a one piece that was close to Nejire's with the frills and a skirt. "How do I look?"

"Super cute Eri," he gave her a thumbs up. "You and Nejire are matching like sisters."

"Just cute?" She pouted, right, she was a ten-year-old, cute probably wasn't what she wanted to hear. Eri shrugged, her pout vanishing. "Okay, now it's your turn! I want to see Izuku in a swimsuit!"

"Me too!" Nejire joined in, her eyes still sparkling as she placed her hands onto Eri's shoulders, forcing the girl to wiggle with her. "Come on Izuku, me and Eri are all set!"

"I have my swimsuit," He lifted up a pair of trunks he picked up one their way in. A lesson he had learned long ago was that shopping as a guy was a lot easier than shopping as a girl, he just read a number and it would fit. It probably wasn't something he should tell the girls though. "It'll fit."

"That's no fair!" Eri stomped her feet and crossed her arms, a terrifyingly cute scowl on her face.

"Yea!," Nejire joined in, she was enjoying this far to much. "Besides we need to do a quality inspection, how else are we supposed to show up to the water park like we own the place, right Eri?"

"We're going to kill it." Seriously who was corrupting her? At least half of this was Nejire's fault and they've only been hanging out for an hour so far. What was Aizawa-sensei going to say when Eri came back?

"I can," he paused, sighing in defeat. "You two aren't going to let me leave until I put it on are you?"

"Nope!" They both chirped.

Defeat was not something he had tasted in a while, he did not miss it. Once inside a changing room, he placed on the swim trunks, and to the surprise to no one, they fit. They were also red with a green stripe on each leg. In a way, they looked like his old high school swim trunks.

When he emerged from the changing room, both Eri and Nejire were dressed again, though he could still see the straps of their swimsuits around their shoulders. With their hands on their hips and a pout on their lips, they looked disappointed in him.

"What? Is there something wrong with them?" They looked like regular old swim trunks.

"Your shirt," Nejire huffed crossing her arms over her chest, her pout turning into a scowl, Eri mimicking her every action.

"My shirt?"

"Yea, you're still wearing it! We want to see what you look like in your trunks." The smile in her scowl began to win out before she sighed, whipping her hair back to head towards the register. His eyes were drawn to the sway of her hips. "Oh well, I guess there will be other eye candy at the park."

Wait. Eye candy? Him? Her? What? Was, was, was she flirting with him? Or was she just teasing? That was it, she was just teasing, it had to be. And he was just reading too far into things. That's all it was.

It didn't help that they were busy with patrols so they saw each other all the time turning work, and then he ended up spending no small part of his free time with her.

"Are you sure you two aren't dating?" Eri asked him her right eyebrow encroaching upon her horn.

"We're just work partners Eri," he said mostly to her, and a bit to himself. Though his eyes did linger on Nejire's smile as she waved them over. She was just a beautiful, nice, friendly, girl that he had a lot of fun being around and she never failed to make him smile. They were just good friends.

XXXX

Somehow, despite having full knowledge that he could easily jump over the structure - a feat he did earlier this week - it still filled him with some kind of excitement that had his heart threatening to burst out of his chest. They were really high up, and the way they were going to go down was through a giant water slide in nothing but a raft, it was only natural that he'd be at least a little excited.

And it had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that his partner of a week kept bouncing into him, sometimes it was her hand that grabbed onto his arm, slapping it as she grabbed his attention to point at something, other times it was something softer as she pulled him from place to place.

Fortunately, she was to busy looking at all the rides to notice how much he was staring at her. Not that he was, it was just kind of where his eyes drifted to when he wasn't focusing. Maybe he'd been working too much lately, but with her, it barely felt like work. As to how she hadn't been snagged up by an actual firm or even started her own by now was kind of lost on him.

"Woah! We're really high up!" Eri shouted she was barely tall enough to get in line for the ride they were currently climbing up. She pushed up onto the railing to get a better view her legs kicking in the air before she bounced down. "This is going to be a lot of fun!"

Nejire spun around facing both of them once they reached the peak. "Alright, so do you know what the plan is Eri?"

"Uhh scream real loud?"

"That's part of it," Nejire teased, motioning towards the docking station. "When we're going downhill make sure you hold onto Izuku, cause we're going to be going super fast and we might fall off!"

"Yea, don't worry Eri, I won't let anything bad happen to you." He gave her another thumbs up while putting on his best smile, one that didn't feel as fake as it had weeks ago.

In true ten-year-old fashion, Eri huffed, pushing her silver hair back behind her head. "I'm not afraid of a water slide Izuku." She paused eyes darting over the edge one last time. "Even if it is the highest one in the park."

He placed the raft down into the docking station, holding it still for the girls to get in. "It's going to be fun, now come on the sooner we get down the sooner we can climb back up the stairs and do this again."

The slide started off simpler enough, a gentle slope that banked to the right. But he had seen this slide from the outside, after that turn was where the real fun and speed began. His grip tightened on the railings as he kept the raft still. Maybe he actually was excited about this.

"Alright!" Eri sat in front of him falling into the empty seat in front of him she rocked back into the seat, head-butting him and beaming up at him. "Ready for takeoff."

The raft moved and a hand trailed along his back that seared away the roaring water. His entire body tensed when he felt her sit close behind him, really close. Really really close. A pair of hands encircled his waist, and he felt two very soft things press up against his back. "Alright Izuku, let it rip!"

He could still feel her breath on his neck. Was she doing this on purpose? Was this flirting? He didn't know how to flirt! This was a vital life skill that he was missing!

"Izuku! Let's go!" Eri shouted scooting forward.

"Right!" He didn't just let go he pushed off, perhaps a bit to far as the raft got a bit of airtime and slammed down with a splash. Both girls screamed and he joined in when they rounded the first turn.

The ride ended in a splash punctuated by Eri's laughter.

 **AN: Nejire this chapter "Oh no I can't hold all this sexy"**

 **Can I just say that writing a ten year old is hard? Also don't worry I'm kind of back, between smash, finals, and a bit of general depression I didn't have much time to write.**

 **Please review, they make me happy. (Also follow I want to beat the other big Izuku x Nejire fics)**


	5. Chapter 5

Somehow he ended up being volunteered to feed them. Though volunteer was perhaps the wrong word, it was more that Nejire and Eri smiled at him and asked him if he would make dinner for them. He offered take out but apparently, that was cheating. Which was why he was stirring a pot of noodles while staring at his phone to make sure he didn't mess anything up.

Or at least that's what he should be doing and he did have one tab open for that purpose. With the other twelve being various pages ranging from; 'how to tell if a girl likes you', 'how to tell if a girl likes you likes you', 'dating for adults', 'flirting for dummies', 'how to flirt like a pro', and the current one 'Holy shit she likes you, you dense idiot just ask her out' he was reading that one because it was easy to imagine Kacchan yelling the whole article at him.

From what he gathered there was a greater than zero chance that Nejire might be flirting with him, and that she might be wanting him to flirt back. But wasn't that too soon? Sure they've known each other for years but the last week made up the vast majority of their interactions. And that was another tab open 'How soon is too soon?'

There was a lot of evidence supporting the Nejire flirting theory. Chief among them was just how much she kept going out of her way to touch him, according to the website, that was a good sign that she might like him. Then there was how much time they spent together even outside of work, which was a lot. It almost felt like he was spending more time with her than he ever did with Ochako.

"Izuku! Izuku! Izuku!" Eri came bouncing around the corner spinning twice as she came spinning into Nejire's kitchen. As to why they were here instead of his home was simple, Nejire's apartment was closer, cleaner, she had a bigger couch, bigger T.V., and an extra bed. It really was closer to an actual home than it was an apartment.

Eri slid along the slick linoleum floor her multicolored socks not helping anything. She was wearing one of Nejire's shirts that was closer to a dress. Her usually free and long hair was done up in a braid a red ribbon was expertly woven into it. "Look what Nejire did to my hair. She's awesome! Isn't it great!"

"You look great Eri! Ultra cute!" He smiled down at her, placing his phone face down on the counter - she did not need to know what he was looking at - and motioned her over. "The ribbon looks cute."

"Yea, Nejire said it matched my eyes!" Eri's smile was full of teeth, she stumbled her way over to the countertop, eyeing the pot he was currently stirring. "It smells good Izuku what are you making?"

"Pasta," He shrugged, it was the easiest thing he knew how to cook, and also the nicest thing he knew how to cook, a skill he learned from his mother. "You wanna try the sauce?"

"Yes!" She stuck her finger into the sauce, letting the hot thick soup stick to her finger before pulling it back and sticking it into her mouth. Just what was Aizawa-sensei teaching her? "It's really good Izuku, but you need to come see Nejire's hair! I did hers!"

She pulled him out of the kitchen with a surprising amount of strength for a ten-year-old out towards Nejire's cozy living room. The T.V. was on, one of the talk shows that covered the news and often brought on heroes was on, he only recognized it from the one time he was on that show.

"We're here tonight to talk about the Stellaris Initiative where science and quirks become one, their most ambitious project is about to launch in a few months and we have a special guest here tonight to talk about it." The host had a quirk that allowed him to always have perfect hair flashed a smile at the camera as the stage shifted. "I hope you'll all join me tonight at nine for a special interview with one of the most important members of the crew Uravity!"

Nejire stomped her foot, a pout forming on her face. Her Pajamas, while they did look comfortable, were rather plain, a yellow shirt that was designed to hang off of her loosely and matching pants. He got his mother a green set for Christmas. Her hair was in a long braid that looked like it was ready to fall apart at a moments notice, it was long enough to wrap around her neck like a scarf nearly twice.

"Oh come on! I want to know!" She whined, crossing her in a huff glaring at the T.V. in the cutest way possible. With a sigh, she changed the channel so that the main menu of whatever DVD they were going to be watching played. It was just one of many movies on the nights to do list.

A smile blossomed on her face when she turned to them. Was it because of him, or maybe it was for him? Or maybe she was just being nice and she always smiled and she was normally always super friendly and he was just reading way to far into things. That last one seemed way to likely, she was always cheerful even when they were at U.A. wait, maybe he should ask for advice.

But who?

"See! I told you it looked good!" Eri slapped him in the chest like she was showing him off.

Wait, how long had he been staring at her? It wasn't even just spacing out in her general direction he was actually staring at her. She just looked so cute, beautiful, and comfy, like she was ready for the most intense cuddle session ever. And why was his mouth still open.

He blinked feeling his face warm as her smile turned into one that could easily give him childhood trauma. Yet he couldn't stop staring at her. That'd been his problem all day! From meeting up with her, to her wearing that bikini, to the walk home, and now in her home. He didn't know when she started taking over his brain, but the process was complete now. "Umm, foods ready."

"Smells good Izuku!" She bounced towards him, her feet barely touching the floor. Even when she slipped past him their eyes maintained their lock, unflinching despite his every instinct demanding that he do otherwise. It was only when she vanished into the kitchen did they break eye contact and he remembered to breathe.

Eri pulled at his shirt, her cheeks puffed out like she was six years old again. "You're supposed to say her hair is nice!" She leaned in close, standing on her tippy toes hand covering her mouth. "And are you sure you're not dating?"

"No," he mumbled, back at her. It was the honest truth. They weren't dating, not yet. But maybe they would be soon? Was that what he wanted? It might be what Nejire wanted, but what about him?

"Ahh!" Nejire's head popped out from the kitchen her lips puckered as she slurped a single long noodle up as it twirled about. "Izuku! Your noodles are super good! I'm totally going to blackmail you into cooking for me more!"

They were just store bought noodles with butter and salt. Same with the sauce, it was just a store bought jar that he put a bit of extra stuff in. He was basically just heating stuff up. "What do you have to blackmail me with?"

"Nothing!" She beamed, bouncing over to him with one hell of a smile on her face. "So quick give me something to blackmail you with." Her smile vanished, and she stopped in her tracks, eyes wide, and just for just a moment fear slashed across her face. "Actually never mind the blackmail part." Her smile bounced right back, and she made a heart with her hands. "But if you cooked for me out of the good of your heart that'd be awesome!"

What was with that?

Was she blackmailed before? She wasn't just being a spaz, her smile normally shined through everything. He wasn't just over thinking it, but whatever it was might be hard for her to talk about. Maybe he should talk to her about it some other time.

"Sure, anytime, as long as you're okay with noodles. And maybe grilled chicken." He gave an awkward laugh, his skills in terms of cooking were rather limited outside of microwave ready.

She pumped her fist, spinning on her heel before turning towards the kitchen, her fist still hanging right above her head. "Score! Now let's eat and watch so many movies that they get burned into our eyeballs!"

"Are you sure you're not-" Eri began. Loudly.

"I'm sure."

Eri offered him a shrug and she sighed like it was no big deal. "Well, are you sure you shouldn't be?"

Great, he was getting relationship advice from a ten-year-old. "That's the part I'm trying to find out."

"Just ask her," Said ten-year-old shook her head pointing towards the kitchen. Come to think of it, there was a very strong chance that Nejire could hear them. Eri placed her hands on her hips, filled with far to much pride for someone her size. "Or do I have to do it for you?"

"Let's eat first then talk about this okay? You're the one that was complaining about being hungry."

"Dad says that I can survive off gossip for like a week, I haven't tried it yet but-"

"Food first, then talk." He placed his hand on her back nudging her towards the kitchen. Hopefully, Eri would forget about everything by the time the movie started. "I'm not going to let you just eat popcorn tonight."

Eri pouted as they made their way to the kitchen.

Nejire stood there, her plate already made and a sauced up bit of noodles was currently sliding into her mouth as she slurped loudly, a bit of sauce resting next to her lips was quickly devoured by her tongue. "Oh hey, Izuku," She spoke with her mouth full then swallowed. "I've been meaning to ask do you any plans Friday?"

"Outside of being told that its Friday and realizing that I have no plans that don't involve work?" It was a bad and somewhat true joke, largely because his social life was pretty much limited to Nejire and the rare friend that remembered he existed and then hitting him up, being an adult just meant that everybody was to busy with their own stuff to really reach out.

"So you're free! Awesome!" Nejire's fork scrapped against her plate. "Now do you own a suit? Oh! You should show it to me that way we can match and totally kill it! Do you know if they actually dance at a charity ball? We should take a dance class? Do you know how to dance?"

"Nejire?" He asked her the moment she placed a saucy bite of pasta into her mouth.

She hummed at him, blinking in his general direction fork still in her mouth.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh! Right!" She pulled the fork out of her mouth, beaming at him. "There's a charity ball I was invited to and I thought that it would be fun if you went as my date!"

Date, date, date, date. The word echoed and boomed in his head like thunder in the mountains reverberating in his soul and silencing the forest of his mind. His heart roared and his cheeks burned. Yet, his mouth still worked. "Date?"

"Yea! Well, you know not a date-date, but you'd like be my date. I think there's a difference. Maybe? But if there isn't that's awesome too! So what do you say, want to go to this charity ball with me? I promise it will be fun and that we won't just spend the whole time drinking next to the punch bowl!" She struck a one-handed begging pose with her thumb between her eyes. "Please!"

"But, I don't own a suit." Really that's what his mouth was going to say? Was he really trying to wiggle his way out of this by coming up with an excuse? It would be his first public appearance in over six months, to say nothing that it was Nejire asking him to be his date. Really why was it that when it came to villains he had no problems but put a girl in front of him and he was clueless.

Maybe he really did rely on punching things to solve problems a bit too much.

"But, maybe you can help me pick out one that will match your dress?"

Eyes wide with glee and a mouth full of pasta Nejire danced in place before she began to float in the air, twirling twice as her braid fell down behind her, coiling up like a half helix. Somehow despite all that twisting and dancing in the air, the pasta managed to stay on the plate. "Yes! That sounds like fun! Ahh, I can't wait now! I'm so-"

Splat.

A large portion of her meal fell onto her floor thanks to an overly ambitious twist.

XXXX

In theory, he should be incredibly comfortable. Nejire's couch was comfortable, the night summer air was neither hot nor cold, his stomach was just barely too full from the last handful of popcorn he had a movie ago, and Eri was passed out on the ground, arms and legs spread like a starfish in a nest of blankets pillows and couch cushions. And the last movie of the night was slowly grinding to a halt.

But there was one thing preventing him from entering that comfortable zone, namely, it was his frantic heartbeat and hyper-awareness of the person next to him. It was technically a good thing, it was strong evidence that she might have feelings for him that extend beyond work and friendship, and stronger evidence that he would be able to return those feelings in a heartbeat.

Nejire, his partner of little more than a week that kept growing more beautiful every time he looked at her, was snuggled into his chest, while his hand rested on her shoulder. There was no mistaking this pose, he had done it in his previous relationship, it was the relaxing couple cuddle session pose.

And it was making his heart go crazy! Honestly, how could she sleep so close to it? He could barely hear her soft snoring over the sound of his blood rushing through his veins it almost sounded like every cell in his body was screaming how cute she was.

It had started out slowly, with both of the girls flanking him while he held the bowl of popcorn. Then Nejire scooted closer, their shoulders touching, followed by Eri moving onto the ground to watch it that way, then the next thing he knew Nejire's head was on his chest acting like everything was normal.

What was he supposed to do? She was asleep, Eri was asleep, he was tired and at this point, the only thing keeping him awake was the adrenaline pumping through his body and a desire to not let this moment end. But maybe Nejire was just a cuddly person and would snuggle with anybody she trusted? It took three months of dating to do this with Ochako and even then both of them were too nervous to do it for more than a few minutes.

He couldn't just wake them up. Well, he could but, he didn't want to.

With a slow and steady movement, he began to move, pulling Nejire's legs over to him while moving to support her back, and pulling her close. She was soft in the way that only girls seemed to be, just so pleasant to touch. Despite the fact that she was strong enough to be the number seven top hero. He stood up and navigated the maze of blankets and cups that littered the floor around the couch, heading towards her room.

Clothes, underwear, and bed sheets were scattered around the room like a hurricane had taken place in there. An over flowering laundry hamper sat next to a pile of what might be clean clothes that were too lazy to be put away, but her hero costume was neatly folded next to some duplicates, an assortment of gadgets was organized nearby. It was similar to how he operated as well.

Just with a lot of bras.

He placed her on the bed, shaking the thought of sleeping in it with her from his head. And covered her quickly with the thin blanket that hadn't been kicked to the ground. "Good night Nejire."

She groaned, her body tensing as she let out a small yawn, her blue eyes shining like stars peeking out from the clouds for just a moment. "Night, Izuzu."

Now to put Eri to bed then make his way home and go to sleep.

He made it to her couch before he passed out face first on the sofa.

 **AN: I had to resist so hard to not have Eri just blurt out that Izuku has a crush on Nejire. Or vice versa. but while it would have been in character it would have kind of rushed things, and I feel like this is still in character. Besides! He's her date to something fancy! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!**

 **If you like this story, and my other works, consider donating to my Ko - fi! it's Ko - fi / Yojimbra or not! Up to you. I'll still update regardless.**


	6. Chapter 6

Once again he was awoken by the sound of his phone having a spasm. The ring-tone was different, no doubt what Nejire was giggling about when she stole his phone once. It was one of those pop songs that people only remembered because of how bad it was. He reached over, answering before looking at the number if only to shut the song up before it melted his brain.

"He-"

"Ahh! I see your ear!" A voice that was exploding with vigor and bravado like the two were struggling to come out on top boomed from his phone. He gasped, dropping the phone and scrambled back away from it. On the phone was a large blue eye blinking at him, before it pulled away revealing a blond-haired man that was experimenting with facial hair. "Ahh! I see your ceiling! Izuku! Do you not know how facetime works? Quickly get in the camera!"

He peered over looking over at his phone, the video call feature was one that he knew of but it wasn't exactly something he had ever used before, mostly because it was a little on the loud side. But for someone as abrasive as Mirio it seemed more than appropriate. "Mirio? Why are you calling me?"

"Ahh sorry! I would have come in person but I was so excited I couldn't hold myself back!" The background spun as he gave a loud laugh. Showing up at his door banging to talk about something that interested him sounded much more like the Mirio he knew, maybe becoming a teacher has mellowed him out a bit. "I'm calling you to offer you my assistance!"

"Assistance with what?" He groaned glaring at the corner of his phone where the time still flashed. It was later than he normally got up, but he'd been staying up later than normal because of Nejire. Oh right, he needed to check what time they were meeting up.

There was a pause followed by at least three months worth of teeth showing in Mirio's smile. "With your quest for Nejire's heart of course!"

"What? How did you know about- I mean, I err uhh! I mean!"

"Oh! Our little Eri told me the moment we stepped off the bus!" Despite how happy Mirio sounded he felt his heart drop into an ocean of panic. "Apparently she's been blabbing to everyone that you have a crush on Nejire!"

Crap! He should have sworn her to secrecy! Or bribed her with something! "It's not what you think we're just-"

"Partners? Oh Izuku, don't think you can lie to me. I can see your blush! And I know how you stammer when you're having girl problems!" Mirio laughed spinning in his chair once again. "Now tell me, aside from your own nervous heart what's stopping you from asking my old classmate out?"

Was his blush really that bad? But wasn't Mirio more Nejire's friend than his? They were classmates and part of the Big Three back then. Wouldn't he tell her about this? Wait, he would have done that already, maybe he already did it? So he had nothing to lose. Besides, Mirio wasn't the type to blackmail him.

"How-" He swallowed, feeling the same nervousness he got whenever he was alone with her swelling inside of him. "How do I know if she likes me?"

"You ask her." The flat delivery was accompanied by an expression that held no humor. Then Mirio's smile came back followed by a short laugh. "I'm serious Izuku! I don't know how much Nejire has changed, but she's always been honest with her feelings. If she hasn't asked you out then that's because she's not sure about yours."

The camera shifted and Mirio was leaning on his desk, like he was about to share a secret. "But let me ask you this, does she touch you a lot?"

"Yes but that's just-"

"Does she compliment you? Does she always try to find a reason to spend time with you? Does she smile at you? And I mean really smile at you?" He paused, tapping his head, his smile smooshed to the side as he rested his head on the table.

"Yes, but-"

"Then she likes you." Mirio smiled once more and turned the camera to the computer, revealing one of the dating advice sites that was still saved on his…. Wait. "Or at least that's what these websites say!"

Wait. Nejire messed with his phone while he still had those tabs open! Oh. Oh no.

"Izuku you really shouldn't worry about it I asked Nejire and she says she likes you." Wait what?

"What? You did? She did? When? How? Why?"

"Joking!" Mirio laughed from the other side of the phone. "It's just that your face got so serious for a moment! And I will always enjoy teasing my juniors when they're being fickle hearted!" His laughter came to an abrupt end and his smile twisted into something that was worse than any villainous grin. "Do you want me to find out?"

"No!" He stood up taking the phone with him. "That's fine I think I get the picture. Besides, I think I'd rather get the answer from her."

He sighed scratching the back of his head. "But, there is one thing you might be able to help me with?"

"Oh? What is it?" Mirio's eyeball and the curve of his smile was all he could see.

"Well, it's just." Another sigh. He didn't even know how to word this. It might not even be anything. No. It was. It was more of a thing than Nejire's feelings for him. The fear in her eyes was tangible. "Do you know why Nejire doesn't like her picture taken?" '

"Oh," Mirio sat up, shoulders square and he saw a flash of anger spread across his senior's usual jovial face. "I do, but that's something Nejire will have to tell you. But don't press her on it Izuku."

"Is it related to blackmail?"

The words hung in the air for a few moments as Mirio's stern face glared back at him. Then there was a small nod. "It does."

"I see, thanks for your help Mirio," Even though most of what he said was the same as the websites. "I'll uhh text you if something happens."

"I'll be looking forward to it! Oh and Izuku?"

"Yea?"

A smile joined with a thumbs up was aimed right at him, an indifferent Aizawa glared at him from the background. "Treat her well!"

What was he supposed to say to that?

XXXX

The last time he had been poked, prodded, and measured this thoroughly was when he had gone to Mei complaining that one of her gadgets was now too small and resulted in his most recent costume design. For her sake, it was a good thing that she wasn't really open to the public and recommending her came with a disclosure warning that rivaled some of those drug infomercials.

Only with Mei the risk for death or getting exploded was slightly higher. And he'd rather be dealing with her at the moment.

"Arm's out." Yuyu Haya mumbled, her sharp brown eyes glaring him up and down like he was a disappointing recruit. It was a glare that could challenge Sir Night Eye's fearsome gaze. She was dressed sharp, dull grey slacks, white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up all contained in a tight vest that fit her perfectly, she looked every bit the tailor shop worker. Somehow she looked better dressed than he ever had, and this was her job.

A smile graced her lips and she relaxed a bit. "I have to say Midoriya, you do clean up nice."

"I'm normally cleaned up though?" Sure there were days when he didn't shave or times when he wore the same shirt two days in a row but he was far from a slob or anything.

"Nah," she walked around him, her dyed red hair was like a sharks fin in the water just taunting him until it was time to go for the kill. "You're normally pretty shlubby like you have all this amazing stuff to work with but you never show it off. Or at least that's what Nejire complains about."

He felt himself smile. "She talks about me?"

Yuyu hummed sticking her head out the door before locking it shut with a click.

He let his arms fall to the side, staring at his own reflection in the mirror.

The suit was a simple black that just made him feel like an adult. It was cut to precision, bold across his shoulders, gentle lines around the waist drawing an immaculate inverted triangle. Lavender lapels made the white of his dress shirt bloom under the sharp lights that covered his every angle. Everything was the perfect length, allowing every subtle movement with no resistance.

The whole outfit felt like he needed to be drinking some scotch that had a decade on him.

Only thing that was missing was a tie, one that Nejire was supposed to be picking out for him. He was starting to understand why All Might always wore a suit. It just felt good.

"Thanks for doing this so quickly Yuyu, Nejire kind of sprung the cha-"

Before he could so much as finish she was in front of him, standing on the stool sharp eyes somehow glaring down at him despite her being nearly half a foot shorter than him. A single, well-maintained nail pressed into his chest, leaving him teetering in a constant state of unbalance.

"I'm going to make this abundantly clear Midoriya, I did not just work three extra hours today for you, or whatever charity you're going to." She was relentless, her breath burning like acid while smelling like mint. "I did this for Nejire and Nejire alone. That means as far as I'm concerned, you're just wearing her suit. And if you wreck her suit, if you get so much as a ketchup stain on it, I will end you. So don't you dare think about fighting in it."

"Got it?"

He nodded sucking in his lip as he tried not to stare at her. At U.A. he had heard rumors about Yuyu and even seen first hand about how she fawned over Nejire, but this was on another level. "You care a lot about her, don't you?"

"Love her," Yuyu stepped off the stool turning to her tools. It made him more than a little nervous the way she spun those scissors. "But, sadly I'm a lesbian and she's not. Best rejection I ever had though." Her smile was soft, followed by a sigh. "Look, I'm serious, if you hurt her I-"

Someone tried to open the door, followed by frantic knocking. "Yuyu!" Nejire's voice chirped from the other side. "Izuku! I got the thing! It's perfect! Can I come in? Is Izuku still naked? Is he in his suit yet? I want to see!" She tried the door again. "Let me in!"

Yuyu rolled her eyes and headed towards the door. "Hold on Nejire, quit trying to break my door down, you dork."

"Why's it locked though?" Nejire's asked trying the door again. "It's still locked!"

The moment the door was opened Nejire flew in, darting around the room and in front of him. Her blue eyes widened and it looked like she was trying to take a mental picture of him. She was still in her casual outfit, he'd have to wait until tomorrow to see her dress. A purple fabric was clutched in her hand.

"Woah," she spun around him, constantly keeping her eyes locked onto him. "Yuyu!~" Nejire whined. "Why'd you make him so hot!"

"Cause you said to make him look good?" Yuyu, stood with one hand on her hip. "But what about you, weren't you going to go get your dress?"

"What? No? Well I did, but it's at home!" Nejire held up the cloth, it was thin, lavender, and didn't look like a tie, or at least not like the clip-on's he was used to. Okay, maybe the suit didn't quite make him feel like an adult. "I wanted to make sure his bow tie matched my dress! And it does! Oh! And the shoulder thingies also match so we're so going to kill it!"

Yuyu made a noise that was half snort half laugh and shook her head. "I told you I knew the dress you were talking about didn't I? I was there when you bought it. Still don't know why you bought it. But I guess it's a good thing." She turned to him, "Alright Izuku let's see how you look with a bow tie."

"A bow tie?" Not a tie, tie? Wasn't that a little childish?

"Yep!" Nejire fluttered in front of him holding the oddly shaped purple fabric in front of her face. "It'll look super good on you Izuku! Trust me! I was right about the hair-cut right? Right?"

"Yea, you have the right amount of nerdy to pull it off." Yuyu placed a hand over her mouth standing at Nejire's side. "Yea, I think that a bow tie is exactly what your outfit needs."

The bow tie was forced into his hand and he stared at it. He barely knew how to tie a tie! What was he supposed to do with this?

"Let me guess? You don't know how to tie a bow-tie?" Yuyu sighed stealing the fabric from his hands. "I'm only going to show you this once, so pay attention Izuku, first you," In the space of two heartbeats she had already tied the bow tie around her neck, perfectly. "Just like that."

With the flick of her wrist the bow tie was in her hand again, and to his disappointment, completely undone.

"Okay, but do you think you can show me that again. But slower?"

It took them about fifteen minutes before Yuyu threw her hands up and tied it around his neck, a bit too tight probably. "Honestly, you better practice before tomorrow, I won't be doing this again!"

"Woah!" Nejire hummed, spinning around again. "See! I told you it'd be perfect!"

She wasn't wrong, the bow tie did suit him. But so would a tie probably. But this would do great.

XXXX

The morning had started out terrible. His stomach was constantly growling, churning, and grumbling but he had no appetite, and what food he did shove down his throat didn't feel like it would stay there. But it did. He had experienced this before, far more often than he'd care to admit. He wasn't sick just nervous. Very nervous.

It wasn't like he had a reason to be. It wasn't even a real date. Just a classy date with Nejire to a fancy charity ball that was raising money for something related to children, and half a dozen other things where there were going to be a bunch of people he didn't know doing who knows what - google wasn't very helpful - and chances are he was just going to stand next to a punch bowl and wait for Nejire to come rescue him.

Wait, what if they danced? He still didn't know if they actually danced at a charity ball!

At least he had figured out how to tie his bow tie after a couple of hours and a thousand failed attempts. Even after all that practice it still only looked about half as good as Yuyu's had with one side noticeably larger than the other.

He stood in front of Nejire's door a good thirty minutes before he was supposed to pick her up just wringing his hands and trying to get rid of some of his nerves.

Maybe he should go get some flowers? Would flowers be too much? It wasn't a date but it was still a date. No, yes? Maybe? If he couldn't even knock on her door how was he supposed to give her flowers? They normally just met up and then she all but dragged him in after patrols but this was his first time knocking on her door.

Why did liking the girl make everything three times harder?

Wait, how long had he been standing here? What would she think if she saw him just standing there like an idiot? He should just knock. Maybe talking to Nejire would calm his nerves?

He tapped on the door lightly. Maybe he should have texted her first?

"About time you dork!" Nejire opened the door in a matter of seconds. A giant smile on her face as she grabbed onto his arm and pulled him into the living room. "I was starting to think you'd never knock! Now tell me what you think?"

All the nervousness left him as he looked at her. Where her casual outfits maximized her cuteness, and her swimsuit maximized her sexiness, Nejire's dress brought everything to the maximum. Star like stones dazzled in a sea of soft lavender that when mixed with her blue hair made it seem like the swirling nebula. The pale skin of her shoulders was exposed and her upper arms were covered by a see through lace. The bottom flared out a bit, as wave upon wave of purple cascaded upon one another ending just below her knees.

"Well?" She laughed spinning again, this time floating off the ground. "I can tell by your open mouth you like it but I want to hear you say it."

He blinked. How long had he been staring at her? How long had his mouth been open? How long was he going to be standing here like an idiot? He shook his head, finding it easy to welcome the smile on his face, and even easier to grab Nejire's hand.

"You're beautiful Nejire."

The blush she grew only added to everything.

 **AN: We don't know much about Yuyu, let alone her class so I basically put her in the general course and made her specialize in suits for people with odd quirks. And Izuku.**

 **Anyways. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I really like how I described Izuku's suit. It's just so clean!**

 **Until next time!**


	7. Chapter 7

The largest party he'd ever been to was a birthday party where his whole class had joined in on. He wore a T-shirt that said 'shirt' to that one. This was on another level of magnitude.

Everything was white, red, gold, or black. Red curtains reached the base of the vaulted glass ceiling that let in the dark night sky. Chandeliers that looked like stars frozen in place dangled far above the main floor that was so well waxed that it could easily double as a mirror, basking everything in a warm glow. A carnival of dishes rested on a pure white table cloth that lined the walls only breaking for hallways and curtains before ending at a large empty stage right next to a live band.

Even the people were a sight to behold, all the women were in dresses that cost more than his apartment, and chances are most of the men had on a watch that was more expensive than his suit was.

It all felt so very rich, and he felt out of place. Where was the punch bowl?

A giant banner spanned the entrance proclaiming "Okumura Foundation" to all those that entered. Which was helpful because neither he nor Nejire knew where they were going outside that it was a charity ball. But the Okumura Foundation was one of those giant charity foundations assisted youths with everything from housing to college tuitions.

In the years since its conception, the charity had quickly become one of the largest and most trusted in the country. Publically, he endorsed them, privately he read a Wikipedia page on them - he knew Shoto and Momo endorsed them as well so they had to be trustworthy - five minutes before an interview once he reached the top ten.

Was it bad form? Yes, yes it was. But they were on the same side, both heroes and charities saved people, just in different ways. Besides he was too nervous trying to wrap his head around the fact that he had a technically not technically a date that was a date but also wasn't really a date-date with Nejire who looked so good in her purple dress that it was like he was going through puberty again and remembering that hey, he liked girls.

How had he gone from thinking that Nejire had a crush on him, to having a crush on her?

The entire trip over here, from the first steps down her stairs to the long elevator ride to the ballroom had been filled with a sense of wonder that led his ears humming and his heart pumping. It was just like in high school, where the sensation made it almost impossible to speak to most girls. But he wasn't the same person he was then.

By the end of the night, he was going to ask her out. Formally! Probably. Maybe. Hopefully. Or maybe he should just wait until-

"Wow!" Nejire spun around on the balls of her feet so that her skirt fluttered briefly, taking in every single sight in one go. Her smile growing with every step and twist. She stopped in front of him, leaning forward so that her chest fell against his - soft - and she grabbed his hands looking up at him with sparkling "Izuku! Are you seeing this? It's so big! And flashy! Wait what are we supposed to do here?"

Her smile made it easy to ignore the odd looks they were getting from a few of the older guests. Then it all came coming down once his mind finally finished processing Nejire's smile. "What?" He whispered holding her hands up, eyes wide. "I thought you knew what to do?"

"I don't know, I read online but I don't know what special guests are supposed to do! It sounded fun!" She did not pick up that he was trying to keep things lowered, that or her enthusiasm kept her constantly excited and ready to burst if she lowered her volume even the slightest bit. "But as cute as you are nervous, remember you're the number four pro hero! A couple of charity people shouldn't be that big of a deal right?"

Technically she was right. But, the room was also filled with so many people that could crush him with their bank accounts, political influence, even other pro heroes of note. He could deal with them. Probably. It was like the whole room was just trying to send him to that punch bowl.

A tall slender man with hair that was half white, half red stood directly in his vision, the same scar that he had in high school still looked like a fresh burn from an open flame. The Pro Hero with the hottest flames and coldest Ice currently number three top hero; Shoto Todoroki, and also one of his closest friends.

"As a top pro hero, you're largely here to socialize and show that you support the charity." Shoto nodded towards them, a small smile that was the most people could get out of him. He gave a small polite bow, showing off his white shirt and red tie. But something else caught his eye. A ring on Shoto's ring finger. "It's good to see you here Izuku, it has been a while."

"Far too long Shoto," He took a step forward grabbing his friends hand and shaking it firmly. "You look great. I never expected to see you in a place like this."

"Momo insisted that I start coming." That might explain the ring. Shoto looked over his shoulder to Nejire his one good eyebrow-raising ever so slightly. "And you're here with Nejire?"

"Yep! He's my date!" Nejire hopped over grabbing onto his arm smiling up a storm. "You're the Number Three top Hero! Shoto right? Are you going to tell me how you got that scar? And what about that ring? Are you married? Is it to Momo?"

Shoto blinked twice in Nejire's direction before turning back to him. "I see she hasn't changed since U.A." He turned, nodding towards a crowd of people. "I will say this, I am engaged to Momo, your address is still the same correct?"

Well that certainly explained the ring. "Yep, same apartment."

"Momo will be mailing the invitations once we have a date set," Shoto nodded once again, "Again, it was nice to see you Izuku." A pause. "Nejire, but I'm needed elsewhere."

"Oh," Shoto turned back to him, a half vacant look on his face that could snap into a ferocious scowl at a moments notice. "I'd like to ask you to be my best man."

"Me? Not your brother?" Or anybody else? "I mean I'm honored but isn't there someone else you should pick."

A soft smile graced Shoto's face and he nodded. "If It wasn't for you I wouldn't be who I am today."

"Oh, well if you're sure, I'd be happy to accept." He extended his hand once more.

After a nod and a handshake, Shoto made a beeline for Momo who was surrounded by a number of guests, her long black hair falling behind her back so that her red dress that hugged her figure all the way to the floor popped.

"Wow," Nejire snorted, elbowing him in the side. "He scored. He doesn't seem like the type to propose though, do you think she did?"

Honestly, he had no idea, Shoto's and Momo's relationship had always been something of an enigma to just about everybody but them. "I'm sure I'll find out at their wedding."

Would it be too much to ask her to come with him? Was that too much if they weren't in a relationship? But, what if they were in a relationship by the time the wedding started. He bit his lip and found his worries vanish when he looked at Nejire looking up at him in a way that made his heart race. Her smiled brightened and she closed her eyes tilting her head slightly and pulling on his arm again, urging him forward.

"If I have a plus one, would you like to go with me? It might be fun." Why did that last bit sound like he was begging?

"Yea! As if I'd miss a chance to see you in a suit!" She flicked his bowtie, her hand grazing around the smooth freshly shaven skin of his neck. Now that was one hell of a sensation. It was like his skin was hypersensitive to her touch sending jolts to his spine that left it tingling with excitement. "You really do look good in a suit. Can we make it your hero costume?"

Okay, so he could probably check off complimenting his looks, and physically touching him off the list of reasons that Nejire might actually like him. And she agreed to go to a wedding with him, that meant something too. Not to mention how much she smiled at him.

Which lead him to the conclusion that Nejire had romantic feelings for him. Probably.

"I uh, well," He scratched the back of his head, the heat of his face forcing him to turn away before he overdosed on cuteness. He swallowed looking around the room for anything that could give him all of five seconds to gather his nerves so he could properly ask her out and talk to her.

Movement on the stage and the numerous tables were being filled with guests. "Why don't you go get our seats and I'll uh, go get us some drinks?"

She hummed at him, her eyes sparkling with just the right amount of mischief to make his hands shake. She knew, she knew everything. Why didn't she say anything? Why wasn't she going first? Was she enjoying teasing him? People did say he was fun to tease. She dropped his arm, still smiling. "Fine. But I don't want to have to rescue you from the punchbowl so hurry back!"

The absence of her presence left him feeling alone as he navigated a sea of a thousand tables towards the nearest punch bowl. He should have asked her if she wanted anything to eat. Or wait, they might not have enough time for that it looked like the speaker was about to start.

"Woah, Izuku?" A voice he hadn't heard in a long time called from behind him as he poured Nejire's drink. He turned, looking up at the tall lanky man that he hadn't seen since graduation. It was Hanata Sero, he was easy to recognize with his usual almost bowl-cut hair and a weird obsession with the color orange. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"Likewise, it's good to see you again Hanata," He bowed awkwardly holding a drink in each hand. "I'd shake your hand but,"

"You drinking for two or are you here with someone," Hanata grinned, bouncing his eyebrows up and down, still as interested in girls as always. Without missing a beat, he poured himself two cups. "I'm here with Itsuka, she still refuses to lose to Momo."

"Oh, umm, I'm here with Nejire,"

"Nejire? Nejire Hado Nejire? Number seven pro hero Nejire?" He nearly spilled the drink his head whipped around so fast, mouth wide open. It only got worse when he nodded. "Like as a date?"

"Technically, but we're not a couple; yet." Why did he say yet? Why, why, why? That was just him hoping! He didn't know how big of a gossip Hanata was but the guy could barely keep a secret especially when it came to women. What if he spoke to Nejire and tried to help! He could mess everything up!

"Huh," He shook his head with a smile that was anything but happy. "I didn't think she'd be dating anytime soon after what happened."

A chill went down his spine and the whole room went silent, the lights fading into the background as he found Nejire sitting there at their table, staring up at the stage. He stared at her, would it be too much to find out from Hanata? Could he just ask her? Was it wrong to-

"You can't blame her from dropping out of the spotlight after her ex posted all those photos of her," Hanata continued.

"Photos?" He asked, still locked onto Nejire.

"Yea, I don't know a lot about it," Hanata stood next to him, a cup in each hand sloshing as he shrugged. "But after they broke up like two years ago he posted a bunch of photos online." Hanata shrugged like it was no big deal and waded into the tables. "I'll see you later Izuku, Itsuka gets annoyed if I take to long."

It all made sense now. Why she didn't have facebook, why she didn't like her picture taken anymore, why she hadn't been to any major public event until now, that was the reason. But, what happened now that he knew. Nejire turned, looking towards him with her brilliant smile and waved towards him.

No, nothing really changed, she was still Nejire, and he was still going to ask her out before the night was over.

He nodded towards her, finding a smile on his face as he once more navigated the sea of tables. If she ever wanted to tell him it would be her choice and he would be there for her if need be. Besides, she was the number seven pro hero, she was not that weak.

"Took you long enough," She half whispered as the lights continued to dim. She took a sip of her drink and perked up, her whole body shaking. "Oooh, that's good!"

"Yea, sorry ran into someone else I knew." He sat down next to her and scooted just the slightest bit closer to her. Would this be the time for it? They were alone in a sea of people and she was looking at him with so much joy in her eyes. "Hey, Nejire I was-"

"Attention please!" The mic buzzed to life and a woman with fluffy cinnamon colored hair stood on the stage, Momo and Shoto were to her right amidst several other people that were probably important. "I would like to thank you all for attending this event, your support means more than you could ever know, I truly believe that no good deed should go unthanked, and I would especially like to thank the two heroes that risked their lives to save not only myself but those of my employees. So please, give a special round of applause for the pro heroes, Deku and Stardust."

The light directly above them clicked on, bathing them in light mid-sip of his drink. He scrambled to place his drink down, feeling his face burning, he shrunk down as a storm of applauds cascaded down around them. Flashes went off all around them. Cameras? Well, it was a public event after all so it was to be expected.

Nejire!

Shoulder's slumped, head down, smile nowhere to be seen. A bit of warning would have been nice! He squeezed her hand under the table - when did he do that? - and pulled her towards his smile. "It's okay Nejire."

Her eyes went wide and she smiled right back at him. She still kept her head down, but her shoulders were straight. She squeezed his hand back. "Thank you."

"Now without further adieu, we have a few speakers lined up for tonight, so please, give them your attention, and after that feel free to enjoy the entertainment and remember to have fun!"

XXXX

"I don't think...charity balls are all that fun." Nejire laughed, shoes in her hands despite the fact that her feet were off the ground. "I'm glad you came though, I would have been so bored and lost. Actually, I probably wouldn't have gone if you hadn't agreed to go."

She hummed spinning in the air, orbiting him as they slowly made their way to her apartment. "I probably would have stayed at home and watched Netflix all night by myself." She pulled some of her hair over her shoulder, running her fingers along its length and smiled right at him. "Or maybe I'd be out patrolling with you?"

"Well, it's about when we normally end our patrols, so we'd probably be walking to your place again." Dammit, how could he be such a coward! The night was almost over and he still hadn't asked Nejire out! Seriously, they were all but at her apartment. It wasn't a big deal if he didn't actually- No! He was going to do it tonight.

"Hmmm, you're probably right, but still with something like a charity ball I expected it to be a bit more exciting than a bunch of rich people talking, a decent band, and an auction. The food was good though, but I just wished that I could have danced! It was called a ball after all! There's supposed to be dancing."

He should ask her to go dancing! She was practically begging for him to say something. But he didn't know how to dance at all. Wait didn't she say something about dancing classes before? Could that be a date?

"Well," he coughed, her door was in view. This was it, he had to do this now! "Umm, if you want, we could umm try to take dancing classes or something."

Her eyes glittered in the starlight as she floated in front of him, lips pursed into a smile that knew all of his secrets and sapped his confidence. He could fight giant monsters, stare down villains, and run into danger without a second thought, so why was asking a girl that liked him out so hard?

"You know, like a date?" He closed his eyes wincing for a blow that would never come. "A real one, because, I umm, kind of think, that I like you. Well I know I do, and I don't mean like a friend, I mean like something more than a friend. And I think that you feel the same way or at least I hope you do." This wasn't working! It wasn't working at all! He just needed to scream it out! "What I'm trying to say is..."

Somehow, he stood tall, somehow, he had his head held high, somehow, he looked her in the eyes, somehow, he found the courage to let it all out. "Nejire! Will you go out with me?"

He stared at her, her feet touching the ground as she looked him in the eyes, a giant smile on her face. "About time! Seriously how many hints did I have to drop? I was starting to worry I was going to have to ask you out!"

"Sorry, I took so long." He bowed. Then he actually processed what she said. It was yes! Yes! She said yes! Wait, did she? It sounded like a yes. It was a yes! "So umm, I guess we should set up a date or something."

"Nah," She floated over to him, barely an inch off the ground. "I mean, we spend a lot of time with each other, and we eat out like every day before and after patrols so we've basically been dating for the past few weeks right?"

"I guess you could think of it that way?" But he wasn't nervous during those, like his first few dates with Ochako left him feeling like he was going to pass out. "But shouldn't we do something different?"

"We should!" She grabbed onto his hands, her shoes falling to the ground. "Which is why we're going to do one of my favorite things!"

"Which is?"

She pulled him back, leading him to her door. "You should know! We did it when Eri was here. Watching movies and cuddling! Except, this time I want you to put your arm around me okay? Oh, I should warn you, I love cuddling so if you're going to date me get used to lots of that! Oh! But we should totally do that dance class thing! It sounds like so much fun!"

"Uhh, oh, uhh okay." He followed her with no resistance. Shouldn't he change out of his suit first though? Was he really thinking about that right now? What about her dress? Why was he worried about all this?

"Hey, so umm how come you didn't ask me out first?"

"Because it was fun to tease you." She twisted, turning to push him down on the couch, she was a spirit of the air, effortlessly floating there like a wingless angel. "Here, you pick something good to watch, and I'll go change into something more comfortable."

His mind told him more comfortable was just pajamas, but other parts of him replayed those scenes where the girl would say that and show up in skimpy lingerie or less. Chances are by the end of the night he was going to have a heart attack.

 **AN: Sorry for the lateness! I tried to post some Original Fiction on Fiction Press but it uhh hasn't got the attention I'm used to so I got in a bit of a funk. And then Tales of Vesperia came out so I dove into that. But anyways! Here it is! And hey look! They're a couple! For some reason chapter seven is always when they get together.**

 **In the original draft of this chapter Hanata had a whole scene with Izuku, and there was a dancing scene where Izuku asked Nejire out. Even Momo had a few lines. But it just kind of didn't work out that way. But I like this way better. It feels more Natural.**

 **Also, why am I not getting as many reviews as before :( Did I do something wrong?**


	8. Chapter 8

"You'll stay with me, right?"

Those were the words that Nejire had whispered to him as he carried her to her bed last night, in a voice that was as cute as it was tired. It as a siren's call that had lured him under her covers where she had gone to sleep in a matter of moment's clinging onto his chest. While he was wide awake his mind trying to figure out exactly what was happening. And in just one night there was a lot of things to digest.

With Ochako it had taken months for them to get to the point where they held hands while alone, and even then it was just sitting on the couch next to each other and being so nervous neither one of them could pay attention to the movie. It had gotten better, slowly of course, with time, but even at the height of their relationship nights where the two of them shared a bed was something that only happened on the weekend, and aside from the occasion where they actually had sex it was always fully clothed.

Nejire was something else entirely. In just this first night she had spent a great amount of time touching him and stripping him of his shirt. Already the garment was lost somewhere to the side of her large and oh so comfortable bed with his jacket tossed somewhere behind the couch, joined with her own pajama top. And he was well aware that her Pajama pants had been kicked off at some point during the night, leaving her in little more than a matching pair of black underwear.

In terms of the physical part of their relationship, it felt like Nejire was strapping a rocket onto his back. He thumbed the lacy fabric of her underwear, his hand had been frozen there since Nejire had fallen asleep, he didn't hate how fast it felt. It was kind of nice. Her not being the slightest bit nervous made his unease little more than an afterthought as he raced to keep up with her.

Then there was that kiss. All twelve of them. The first one came out of nowhere, a chaste kiss on the lips because she was curious what his lips felt like. The second blindsided him as well, when she said she liked kissing him, she continued to assail him with nine more kisses each one turning off his brain for just a moment as he felt the fires in his heart evaporating the sea of doubt he so often lost himself in.

The twelfth kiss was the only one he initiated, it was a sweet kiss meant to say goodnight and goodbye to Nejire before she pulled him into her bed and used him as a pillow.

It was there that he had been frozen at her touch as time passed him by. Sunlight was already peaking out from Nejire's thick curtains and he hadn't even slept a wink, yet he couldn't remember ever feeling so rested. Maybe he was asleep and this whole thing was a dream. Wait, he wasn't this confident in his dreams, if this could be called confident.

He was laying in bed with his uhh - girlfriend, teammate, mutual love interest - touching her bare skin in several places while she snored cutely. It was several kinds of amazing, and if this was what being in a relationship with Nejire was going to be like, well that'd be just great. As soon as he figured out how to actually fall asleep when she was using him as a pillow. Maybe it was because he was laying flat on his back? If he rolled over and actually hugged her he might be able to fall asleep better, but that just might be an excuse to touch her more? How much was he allowed to touch her? Was this already too much? Was it too little? She was touching him a lot, but she wasn't touching him anywhere private.

Maybe if he just rolled over and wrapped an arm around her waist that would be okay. It wasn't even that he was uncomfortable, just hyper-aware of the woman sleeping next to him. And he really wanted to touch her some more. And maybe try kissing her. Would it be creepy to kiss her in her sleep? What about hugging her? Should he have refused her and gone home to his own bed? No, he wanted to be here.

With a silent yawn that popped his jaw twice, he felt his body finally relax. Eyelids heavy, limbs exposed to the chill summer air that made the thin blanket he was sharing with Nejire just feel perfect. He rolled over, wrapping a hand around Nejire's waist and pulling her in tight. She mewled and readjusted herself still asleep, he pressed his lips against her forehead and was out like a light.

XXXX

"Wakey, wakey," a soft voice lulled him out of his slumber as though he hadn't even been asleep. "Your tummy is all grumbly."

Something soft brushed against his lips restoring all the missing energy in his body and kick-starting his mind. He could feel her laughter dance on his lips like a party of fairies celebrating the sun-rise. It was over far to soon and he chased after that feeling, leaning up and opening his eyes.

Nejire was sitting on his stomach, her blue eyes were filled with radiant happiness that just made her glow in the late morning light. Her long blue hair was curled around her neck and shoulders like she had turned a cloudless summer day into a scarf. The dress shirt he wore last night was several sizes too large for her so that her hands were completely engulfed in the sleeves and the hem served hung low enough on her that she could wear it as a dress.

It was impossible not to smile back at her. Propping himself up on his elbows he let out a yawn and tried to ignore the bare flesh of her thighs that was touching his stomach. That was another impossible thing. Touching Nejire was something else. "Why are you wearing my shirt."

"To keep you shirtless," She rolled off him, bouncing onto and then off of the bed, her feet barely touching the floor before she let out a long stretch that lifted up the hem of his shirt just enough to expose the bottom of her butt. A flash of her blue eye drew his gaze back to her face and the toothy smile she was wearing. "Besides, I think I look super cute in it, don't you think so?"

"I'm inclined to agree." Waking up like that would have been perfect, save for the pang of hunger that punctuated his sentence.

Nejire laughed, her feet leaving the floor, she fluttered over to him grabbing onto both of his hands and pulling him to his feet. "Come, on, let's go cook some breakfast. Or is it lunch? How about brunch? I can make eggs, oh I think I have the stuff for an omelet or two. Sorry, I was lazy and didn't go shopping."

"That's," He swallowed his mouth running dry just from looking at her. This was Nejire! His girlfriend? She was holding his hands and dressed in nothing but underwear and his shirt! This was stimulation beyond stimulation. "That's alright, I'm, uhh," what was he supposed to say? He should say something nice! "I'm, just you know, happy to spend time with you."

She snorted while dragging him to her kitchen. "You're a dork Izuku," in a dazzling display of ariel agility she spun forward kissing him on the lips before darting away so fast he wondered if it had even happened. "But that's what I like about you though. But really, I'm your girlfriend now though. I think. Probably? Am I? Do you wanna be my boyfriend?"

He nodded, biting his lip trying really hard not to stare at the valley of cleavage that laid before him, the first four or so buttons of his shirt were undone, exposing Nejire all the way to the top of her bra. How'd she sleep in that thing? "I'd like that."

"Me too! Now we're official romantic partners and hero partners! Ha!" Nejire hummed, releasing his hand as they entered the kitchen. He already missed her touch. "I guess I really shouldn't be surprised that you didn't try anything last night."

"Anything?" He asked, finding his tongue sticking to the top of his mouth even as she filled his hands with eggs, ham, cheese, and vegetables. "What do you mean?"

"I mean like touching me and stuff! I know you're shy, and nervous, and stuff, but if it wasn't for the way you stared at me, I'd start to worry you didn't think I'm pretty." She spun away from the refrigerator, holding a jug of juice and closing it with her foot. "Like it took you the whole night to even start kissing me.!" She flailed her arms and pouted. "And you give good kisses."

He did? Well, that was good to hear, really really good. But the other stuff not so much. "Sorry, it just kind of feels like we're going a little fast. And I umm," What on earth was he trying to say? "Well I mean, isn't kissing on the first date kind of fast?"

It was cute her how nose crinkled up like that. "What? I thought I was the older one, that's kind of old fashion. But, I guess we're going kind of fast. It's just that I trust you and I really like you and you really like me and I trust you and you're a Hero. And you're hot. So I mean it's okay that I want to go a little fast right?"

"But isn't that bad for a relationship?"

"So's going to slow, besides!" She placed both hands on her hips, smiling brightly at him. "It's just the physical stuff! That's super important! Like it's really really important that we're attracted to each other! We can let the emotional stuff develop Naturally."

She took a step forward, placing a cold hand onto his bare chest and smiling up at him, eyes locked onto his. "But, if you want to take things slowly, that'd be okay too, just let me know if I'm going to fast." The look in her eyes burned away his concerns, worries, and reluctance leaving little else but a desire to kiss her softly. She was good at this, way too good. "Besides, I don't want this to be some casual thing, you're my type plus ultra!"

Had it not been for the food in his hands he would have pulled her into a hug and tried to kiss her. Once that minor obstacle was taken care of he grabbed Nejire by the shoulders and kissed her. She was quick to return it, even smiling into it. He still held her close, ready for a second kiss as he spoke, "I'm just nervous Nejire, but I want this," he ran a hand up and down her arms. "So, please, go as fast as you want, just make sure you drag me along okay?"

"You sure?" She placed the flat of her hand against his chest just enough to push him back an inch. "Cause if I'm in charge we're wearing way too much clothing."

His mind must have gone blank for at least a minute, as he stood there blinking at him. Was she? Did she? Did that? Yes, yes, and yes. "I umm, well," he sighed into a laugh. "You're not as Innocent as you look."

"Innocent?" Her face twisted and she glared at him, finger grazing his lip. "I've been trying to seduce you for like a month! I am not innocent!"

Her pout had to be the cutest thing he'd ever seen. "How can I make it up to you?"

"Oh," Her smile dispelled any notion that she had ever been innocent from his mind, and the sparkle in her eyes sent a shiver all the way down his spine and made his haird stand on end. Her voice dropped an octave and became thick and sultry. Her finger burned a trail along his chest before stopping right above his belly button. "I can think of a few ways that you can make it up to me, but we can't do them on an empty stomach!"

 **AN: shorter chapter this week! Sorry! Also hey look! Nejire is lewd! Not doing a lemon because I feel like the story doesn't really benefit from it. I hope you all enjoy it! Kingdom Hearts 3 may or may not interfere with my update schedule. + school.**

 **Quick question, once I finish something, what would you all think of a Joker (Persona 5) x Lucina (Fire Emblem) fic based around Joker returning from Smash and Lucina accidentally joining him?**


	9. Chapter 9

There was something magical about the first few moments when they were somewhere private after a day on the job. It was like all the times Nejire wanted to touch him but couldn't, were pressed into that single minute, and she was very physically affectionate. The moment the door closed behind them she jumped onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, pulling him into the kind of kiss that he only really saw in moves, forcing him against the wall as his bag of groceries fell to the floor.

It was becoming one of his favorite things about dating Nejire.

Not including the whole him dating her thing, that is.

He felt her lips twist into a smile as she pulled away, the ghost of her touch still dancing along his skin as her blue eyes scoured him for his reaction. Nejire feasted on his responses, every smile he gave her was returned with a larger one and those few rare moments during their patrols when they were still and alone and he squeezed her hand left her blushing and in smiling for hours.

"It must be a miracle that we've gone two weeks without being caught," He laughed, hugging her just high enough off the ground so her feet couldn't quite reach, not that she'd be standing on the floor anyways, she tended to float after kissing him like that. The choice to keep their relationship was ultimately both of theirs, him to keep something private, and her for her own reasons.

"Yea," She hummed, pushing out of his arms and floating in the air like she was lounging in a river. The smile lingering on her lips was just another one of his favorite things, it was the look she gave off when she was unwinding from Nejire the pro-hero to Nejire, just Nejire. Her small nylon hung close to the ground.

With a push off from the wall, she drifted deeper into his apartment, wide-eyed. "Oh, so this is the inside of your apartment." She stopped in his living room, spinning in place before her eyes fell. "It's kind of boring."

She wasn't wrong, his living room was a couch, T.V., a mostly empty bookshelf and a coffee table where he threw all of his mail, and a few All Might posters that had survived the moves. Especially compared to her apartment, but his didn't cost that much, and he didn't really spend all that much time here anymore.

"Well, what did you expect?" He asked heading into the kitchen, there was no door or hallway to it, just a wall that divided the two rooms with no fancy window that let him see out into the room. "I told you as much, I still don't know why you wanted to come over."

The dull sound of his T.V. turning on gave away its age when it sparked to life. "With the final touches complete for the Stellaris Launch Initiative, all they're waiting for is late next week for optimum launch con-"

It hummed again, the sound of the channels being changed at a steady pace drifting into the kitchen. Before finally, it stopped on one of the few music stations he got.

"Because!" Her head popped out from the corner, her hair falling to the side. "I've been your girlfriend for two weeks and hadn't even seen this place! Seriously! I thought you were like hiding something fun! Not hiding that it was boring!"

"And what would be fun?"

Her smile vanished and she gave him a half-hearted glare. "A secret."

"What kind of secret?"

"The dark and foreboding kind!" She slapped her cheeks pulling her face down into a fake scream. "The kind that would ruin you if it ever got out into the public!"

"Oh, well I do have something like that," He unpacked their dinner piece by piece, trying to pay no attention to his overly cheerful girlfriend that was now hovering next to him that same curious light in her eyes as when they met over a month ago that continued to brighten his world every time he saw it. "Oh," He placed a jar loudly on the counter, popping off the lid with just a twist. "Do you want to know?"

"Mmm!" She nodded with enough force that she began to spin forward doing the worlds slowest summersault. "Yes!"

"My secret is." Pause for dramatic effect, just long enough to see her eyes. A smile grew on his face that was impossible to hide. "I'm actually a really boring person."

Thud!

No doubt he'd get a noise complaint from his neighbors because Nejire fell to the ground flat on her back, glaring at his ceiling and pouting, it was an odd look considering she was still in her hero uniform. A single finger was directed at him. "You are a jerk! My night is ruined!"

"I do have another secret, but it's one that you already know."

Her glare twisted, her pouting fighting a losing battle against her overwhelming curiosity. It didn't take long for her crack, biting her lip and staring up at him. "What is it? I know I know it, but if I don't know what thing I know is a secret I might actually blab it."

"Oh, well just that I have a super awesome, amazing, beautiful girlfriend."

She rolled forward, her pout set to extra strong, even with her cheeks being tinged that lovely shade of pink. Maybe he actually was good at this flirting thing. "I'm starting to think that your quirk is being super cheesy!"

The sauce began to bubble the moment he poured it into the pan, filling the room with a mouth-watering smell that made his stomach keenly aware that he hadn't eaten in eight hours. Neither of them had really. "You wanna take a shower while I start the food?"

Not that she was any dirtier than he was if anything the opposite was true. He was just being polite, that was all. Had nothing to do with the fact that he'd technically have Nejire naked in his house and that he'd be listening to her shower. Nope. Not at all.

"Uhuh," she bounced up onto her feet, leaning forward and poking him in the chest, her smile was bag even as she continuously scanned him for any sign of breaking. "You sure you're not just trying to distract me so you can hide all the naughty things in your bedroom?"

"Like what? Dirty clothes?" Given how her floor was occupied by more clothes than he owned he really didn't feel like that would be a big deal. "Or my work out equip-"

"Porn." Nejire nodded with her hands on her hips as she had just solved a crime. "Wait, that's not too invasive, is it? Sorry, still bad with boundaries."

"Oh," Now it was his turn to blush, putting his attention into his cooking. "Don't, umm, don't most guys just use their phones and computers now?"

"Oooh," Her eyes widened like she just remembered they had cell phones now. Then her shoulders fell into a slump and her hands hung loosely. "Right, that actually makes sense. Darn, here I was hoping to find some dark secret or something because aside from being shy and a little awkward, you're probably like the best boyfriend in the history of boyfriends."

"Thanks?" He shrugged, his smile lopsided, that was a weird compliment, it really didn't feel like he was doing anything extremely boyfriendy. If anything he was still freaking out that whenever he was around her he had no idea what to do and his phone was currently filled with dozens of articles about how to be a good boyfriend and other topics. "And I don't really need those things because I have a sexy girlfriend like you."

Nejire snorted sticking her tongue out and stomping away from him. "You are so lucky I'm not lactose intolerant!" She lingered at the corner smiling at him her eyebrows wiggling. "I'll go take a shower, try not to think about me being naked in your house without you being there to see it too much!"

Really, being cheesy was his only counter play to the sheer amount of enthusiasm that Nejire put into every aspect of their relationship, from hand-holding to communicating to the experiences in bed. Because of how her quirk worked by using her own vitality and stamina, she could outlast him if he wasn't careful. And that didn't just extend to the bedroom, on their patrols she could probably patrol for twice as long as he could and still be ready to date.

She was also hyper about being lazy. According to her depending on the day and time, her all-time favorite thing was spending the whole day in her pajamas watching movies, and that it might be better if he was there. When they tried to do that, she was cute, hyper, and in control, it also went from pajamas to less rather quickly.

It felt like every night with Nejire was some new adventure. And tonight would be no different. He knew that he shouldn't compare his current relationship to his past relationship, but it was hard not to. Already it felt like he had gotten further in his relationship with Nejire in two weeks than he had with Ochako. And not just because they had more sex in the past two weeks than he had in the rest of his life, that was just a bonus.

Still, he wondered how Ochako was doing, she was part of the Stellaris Initiative, right? Maybe he should try talking to her again, it was a while since their last text, longer still since they actually spoke in person, but, maybe that was just part of becoming just friends again. That and he didn't really reach out to any of his friends, outside of the increasingly rare moments where he would browse facebook and like half a dozen posts.

And all these thoughts were to distract him from the sound of Nejire in his shower.

Maybe he should have joined her.

A click came from his front door, someone unlocking it before it opened and the shuffling of feet against the carpet echoed before he looked down the hallways. His mouth found his way to the floor when he looked down the entrance to his apartment. It was a sight he hadn't seen in a long time. His heart began to beat faster, as old buried feelings began to stir, threatening to upheave his current life.

She was as beautiful as the last time he had seen her, long brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail so that her flushed face was fully exposed. Why was she here? What was she doing here? How did she get in?

"Ochako?" His voice cracked and his face felt flushed. What was he supposed to say? What if Nejire saw? Why now? Did she know? Was he sick? How? What? Why? A million questions bumbled into his mind but the most important one won out. "What are you doing here?"

She took a breath, no smile gracing her face as she marched towards him, her footfalls like the beating of the drums of war. There was something desperate in her eyes, a fear he had seen before when saving people, but it was different. Her arms extended towards him and she jumped towards him. "Izuku!"

Their lips met. A kiss. There was no other way to call it. It took less than a heartbeat for him to react and push her away. But it still felt really wrong. Way wrong. So wrong. Did he just cheat on his girlfriend? Why was Ochako kissing him? Why did he see her tears beforehand? What the hell was happening?

"So, uhh," Nejire's voice came from the hallway, one hand on her hip, a single towel wrapped tightly around her body and her hair was somehow contained in another that sat high on her head like a massive tower. "What's happening here?"

"It's not what you think!" The words flew from his mouth and he found himself pushing Ochako further away despite her tears.

"Oh, so, Ochako didn't just barge in and force a kiss on you?" A single eyebrow vanished under her head towel and her lips twisted.

"Actually that's what happened." Thankfully, his life wasn't some bad day time drama show that his mother would love to watch and Nejire was actually level headed. But there was still more drama than he'd ever wish for.

"You," Ochako, stammered, back against the wall, eyes growing wider by the second. She looked between him and Nejire before settling on him eyes full of hurt. "You moved on?" She placed a hand over her heart, "I, I should, I should go. Sorry!"

Nejire grabbed her by the arm. "Woah, hold on Ochako, I can't let you go out like this, please, tell us what's wrong."

"No," Ochako pulled away. "I was just desperate and having second guesses, that's all. I mean I didn't know. I just. I should have talked to him. I didn't realize that he had." She took a breath gathering herself for a moment. "Were you two even talking?" She groaned. "Wait sorry. I just. I should go, I'm sorry."

"No way!" Nejire blocked her path, arms crossed, looking just as intimidating in just a towel as she did in her hero uniform. "I'm sorry Ochako, but as your friend and upperclassmen I want to know what's wrong with you. And Izuku's still your friend too! So please, if something's wrong please tell us."

"Yea," he really didn't know what to say after that. Whose side was he supposed to be on? Were there sides? There was so much about this that he just didn't know what to say or what to do. "Please, you're crying. Tell us what's wrong."

"It's nothing., really, I just," she sighed deflating and wiping the tears from her eyes. "With the launch coming up soon I'm having doubts is all and I'm worried, and I just wanted to be with you one last time before I left, that's all I I think."

She laughed, pushing another tear from her eyes. "I guess I really don't have much else left for me on this world."

"Okay, you're not leaving until we fix all this." Nejire grabbed Ochako by the shoulders pushing her onto the couch. "You sit here, I'm going to go change into something because this is not a conversation I want to have in a towel, and Izuku I think something is burning."

XXXX

"Your cooking has gotten better," Ochako offered him a smile her fork scraping against the plate, as she gathered the last bites up. "It's a lot better than the buttered noodles and grilled chicken breast you used to make. And it beats what they're feeding us at the training facility."

"Thanks," he really didn't want to tell her that his primary motivation for learning to cook was to impress Nejire. That just seemed kind of rude.

"I guess this explains why you stopped texting me so often, I thought that maybe someone took your phone from you." Her smile was as bright as he remembered it being but quickly faded away. "You look happy Izuku, I'm sorry about all this."

What was he supposed to say to that? There probably wasn't anything he could say to that. Dammit. What kind of situation did he end up in? "Sorry for not letting you know but I umm… well, yea."

"Yea," she nodded in agreement. The feeling of her kiss still lingered in his mind as a reminder of what she had done. He wanted to remove it from his mind, pretend it never happened and just continue on with his night with Nejire. But now it'd all be too awkward.

Nejire bounded into the room, dressed in grey sweatpants and a shirt she had lifted from his room that went down to her knees, it was one of his favorites the one that said shirt on it. It felt a bit tasteless for her to be wearing one of his shirts, but he barely understood what was happening.

"Alright," She bounced onto the seat next to Ochako, towel still wrapped around her shoulders. "Now that I don't have like a gallon of water in my hair, what's up?"

"Well, umm, I'm sorry for barging in and kissing Izuku like that," A blush grew on her covering her face from chin to ear tip. From her pocket, she pulled out a small house key, one that he had forgotten he gave her and placed it on the table. "I guess I should probably give that back. But umm yea. I'm really sorry."

"Apology accepted!" Nejire gave Ochako an awkward shoulder shrug. "It's kind of our fault for not telling anybody we were dating, well I mean it's not like we told nobody but like we didn't tell you and you're our friend so sorry but it also kind of felt weird to go and be like hey I'm dating your ex-"

"Uhh Nejire," he interrupted her before she could make things worse. "I don't think you're helping."

"Huh? Oh right? Sorry!" Now they were the ones apologizing. "But, can you please explain what's wrong, you look like you're in a panic about something."

"I kind of am panicking." Ochako gave a hollow laugh that ground into a groan. "I'm sorry, you really don't need to hear all this."

"We're here for you Ochako, we're you're friends if something is bothering you please let us help you." He leaned forward, not sure if he should be reaching out to touch her or to just keep his hands to himself and let Nejire do all the physical support. Dammit! He was so awkward and terrible at emotional support. He never knew what to say.

"Its silly really," Ochako took a sip from her drink, staring into the cup for a moment. "I mean, I'm choosing to do this, and don't really regret it or anything, it's just that with a week left before the launch I realized I wouldn't be seeing home for at ten years if everything goes well."

Nejire's eyes went wide. "Woah! What are you doing that'll you won't be home for ten years, and wait what launch? What are you doing? It sounds exciting!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm just used to everybody else already knowing everything about it. I'm part of the Stellaris Intiative Launch," She flexed her hands showing off the pads on her fingers that allowed her to cancel gravity. "Because of my quirk I'm actually one of the important factors of the whole mission, I can reduce the gravity of most of the cargo so we can carry more stuff to Mars. and reducing the ship as a whole."

That name carried with it an ocean of silence that covered the whole room in its wake. As well as the breadth of knowledge that came with it. That was what the Stellaris Initiavtive was doing. They were going to mars, centuries after the first man landed on the moon, now they were once again making strives for that brighter tomorrow after the stagnation caused by quirks.

And they were using quirks to do it.

"You said mars right?" Nejire laughed, rubbing her head with the end of the towel. "Like I don't have water in my ear or something right?"

Ochako shook her head, "No, you heard me right, I'm surprised you don't know, it's been on the news for at least half a year. I was originally just going to be part of the launch crew, but we decided that my quirk was the best way to ensure a return trip was possible, turns out it takes a lot less fuel to go places when you don't have to worry about gravity, but I'm just one part of the whole mission team, Yui, from class B back then is also a part of it now because her quirk allows us to take more things."

"Woah, that sounds absolutely amazing! You're going to be one of the first people on Mars! I guess I'd be a bit scared of that too."

"I'm actually really excited about that, but it's just that I won't be able to see so many of my friends and family that's making me panic a lot." She took another sip of her drink, holding it in the odd way she did so that her two pinkies never touched it. Her quirk was truly amazing to allow people to travel so far. "I mean my parents are excited for me, and they won't have to worry about money because of this, but I just wanted to spend my last week on earth with everybody."

"And that's why you came here?" He asked, leaning back into his seat to try and think. She had broken up with him because the long-distance part of their relationship made her loose feelings for him. Was that just a lie because she didn't want to hurt him with her literally leaving this world? Or did she just want something physical?

"I didn't plan on kissing you," She mumbled, eyes down. "I just wanted to surprise you really and watch a few movies and stuff. But when I saw you I had a thought that I'd never see you again, that I'd never be able to kiss you again." She pushed a fresh tear from her eye. "I'm sorry, I really am I don't want to come between you two. I'm not like that."

"It's okay Ochako, you're still my junior so it's still my job to make sure that you're safe and happy! Which means tonight we're going to sit on this couch and watch every single girly movie on Netflix and watch Izuku slowly wither away under the sheer power of out estrogen!" Nejire stood pumping her arm in a victory pose, before floating towards the kitchen. "Izuku! Where's the popcorn? Oh, this looks good. Oooh! It tastes good."

It was nice that she finally found the dinner he cooked. "Are you okay with this Ochako?"

She smiled at him, the last of her tears vanishing into her sleeve. "Yea, I mean I'm not sure if I was just wrong about my feelings or if they came back I think I'm just overly emotional right now. I'm happy you're with someone like Nejire, she's a nice person. And umm sorry for intruding on your date night. I didn't know."

"It's fine," In all fairness, they had more date nights than not date nights since they started having date nights. If staying in watching movies and various bedroom activities could be called date night. "Besides we haven't hung out in a while and we are friends after all."

"Right," She smiled at him full force. "Friends."

Drama adverted.

 **AN: Oh, hey Ochako got included. Before you ask, no they did not have a threeway. Sheesh. Anyways, yea, Ochako is using her quirk for space travel. Fun huh? Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this not actually fluff chapter. Originally I was going to have this chapter take place while Nejire and Izuku were on a date, but given how they're trying not be in the public eye it didn't fit. Plus, this way made Ochako feel more desperate than happenstance.**

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! (Didn't I say that already?)**

Donate to my Ko-fi! Ko-fi /yojimbra if you want.

Also go check out my Joker x Lucina fanfiction, Butterfly! Until next time.


	10. Chapter 10

"Are you sure, this is a good idea?"

"Yea it's totally fine! We're just seeing her off! Besides, if anybody asks just say we're here as extra security!"

"I think the actual security has seen us."

"Quick! Come up with a better excuse! Oh-oh-oh! We're worried that the rocket is going to explode!"

"That's the truth though." Apparently, most of it was made by Mei. As to how she was allowed anywhere near anything even remotely explosive was beyond him. He'd sign a petition to ban her from Salt, purely because she'd probably find a way to get the sodium out of it to power some kind of a giant mech.

The rocket itself was larger than he thought it would have been, at least compared to the various pictures he'd seen of the old American shuttles that made frequent trips to a space station, but that was history now when quirks were developed the space station and science, in general, seemed less important than trying to keep society from regressing to a bunch of tribes lead by those who had the strongest quirks.

But, here they were, staring at a rocket ship that as going to go to Mars. Kind of felt like they were skipping a few steps. If he didn't have his heart on becoming the number one hero he'd probably ask to sign up.

"So, should we run?" Nejire asked, hands behind her back hovering just to his side with a brilliant mischievous smile on her face that she oh so loved to give him when she was up to no good. "Or do you have some kind of plan with dealing with those guards. They look kinda scary."

"Didn't we fight against someone that had a giant squid quirk two days ago?" One of his costumes was completely ruined by the ink that guy put out.

Nejire shrugged, "I like Kalimari."

"After the launch if we're not in jail for trespassing you want to go get some?"

Before she could answer they were swarmed by security. It was probably a bad idea to just fly into the base instead of going through the proper channels, but these things happened whenever he let Nejire fly him anywhere. It was also really awkward when people took pictures of it because he was this large man dangling from this small woman who was easily carrying him through the air.

Her quirk really was amazing.

"Let's just talk to them, I'm sure most of them know who we are." At the very least, a good portion of the crew went to high school with them. Besides, his suit was technically made by the same person that made the rocket so everything was fi-

Nejire let out a squeak, leaping up into the air a few feet, right as he was tackled by several guards.

XXXX

Rather than be surprised, or happy that they came to see her off. Ochako was angry. She was dressed in what he could only describe as a space suit. Gadgets and gizmos were attached to her suit in a streamline uniform way. Resting to her side was some kind of a helmet.

"Are you two stupid?" Her arms flailed, face bright red so that her normally pink cheeks were hidden beneath the tide of anger that was spreading off of her. "You thought that you would just walk into a secure location - that has a fence around it for a reason - the day of the launch to surprise me? You could have ruined everything and we'd have to wait like three months for the next launch window!"

Well when she put it like that, it did seem like a really bad idea.

"Sorry," he winced under her glare, it was his first time seeing Ochako that level of mad. Well, the first time he'd seen it directed at him. He really didn't know what to do at the moment. "We uhh just kind of wanted to see you off."

"Yea!" Nejire nodded from her seat. "Besides if security is such a big risk then we should be here to patrol and stuff. What if a giant monster shows up and wants to destroy the rocket cause he's a villain? Oh! How does it work? It looked really big, how many people are going to be in it? Are you guys going to live on it? How's it supposed to make the return Journey? What happens if someone-"

"Nejire." Ochako sighed, pinching her nose and looking like she was done with anything. "We've got it covered, most of the crew were pro-heroes and the security is being overseen by some as well. And as for the rest of your questions. I don't know."

Another sigh and she grabbed her helmet, tossing it in her hands. "Look, I'm actually happy you two showed up to support me, but my parents already saw me off and I actually really need to get to the launch pad, I'll still be able to send Emails over the long ranged-" her voice muffled as she put on the helmet, twisting it into place before flipping the visor up. "So, yea, I'll keep in touch."

She shrugged, walking over to hugging Nejire. "Look, I'll keep in touch with you guys, but I need to get to the launch pad."

"Yea!" Nejire returned the hug, her cheeks red at their joint bad choices made today. "Sorry about all the trouble Ochako, I just really wanted to see you off."

"It's fine," she smiled and sighed before glaring at him. "And you! Next time use your brain! I know you're smart Izuku!"

Why was he the bad guy?

XXXX

After an hour of prep time, with far too little fanfare. For something as major as this, the crew of thirty was prepped and ready for take-off. News crews lined the beach filming what could be considered the largest event since Hero became a recognized profession. And hopefully it wouldn't explode.

Unlike the footage of the old American rockets that had a lot of rumble, smoke, fire, and noise, and were forced to take off vertically, the Stellaris 1's launch pad was closer to a ramp, angled towards the horizon. One of the biggest difference was the structure of the ship as a whole, there were no exterior rockets to provide thrust and the engies on the rocket could barely even be considered thrusters.

They were closer in size to jet engines. And were comically small on the rocket.

Though maybe rocket was the wrong word for it. The more he looked at the strange craft the less the term rocket ship seemed to fit, and the more Space ship did.

"Ya'know," Nejire hummed swaying from side to side hands behind her back. "I think that I would have liked to go to Mars. Even if my quirk wouldn't have done a whole to help with the mission."

He reached out, sliding his hand along her slender arm and finding the large thick bracers she wore around her arms, before locating his target. Her soft hands, that somehow even with the callouses were still soft and just so much fun to touch. Their fingers entwined and her smile came back from its short vacation.

"Why's that?"

She shrugged, tightening her grip around his hand and leaning in closer. "I don't know. It just feels like the best way to get away from it all. Like literally all of it. It'd be an adventure on a whole new world! One that's mostly red and stuff, but yea!" An adorable pout graced her lips as she nodded her head to her own thoughts. "But, I'd be seriously conflicted about going if I still met you."

"Is there a reason you'd want to go? Besides the adventure and fun of it." Was it related to her ex? No, he shouldn't think like that. When she wanted to tell him, then he would listen. It was probably just part of her natural curiosity and adventurous personality.

She tightened her grip on his hand, biting her lip and nodding. Eyes locked onto that ship. "Maybe, but it's not important now."

Why did it sound like she was running?

The count down began to sound, ending their conversation and drawing them once more to the Space ship.

Ten.

Nine.

Eight.

Seven.

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

It hummed at first. Then there was a roar. Followed by the most anticlimactic zoom as the rocket launched off its ramp, a trail of white smoke making its way up and away from them.

But, that was only secondary, he couldn't take his eyes off of Nejire who had taken the chance to say something during the brief take-off period.

"Did you seriously just say 'Olive Juice' during the launch so I'd think that you'd say 'I love you' instead? like this is a bad romance movie?"

She grinned her cheeks red. "I kind of thought the engines would be louder."

"Well, Olive Juice too."

It took her five seconds to process what he just before her face went bright red. She tried to hide it into his shoulder while lightly smacking him in the chest. Maybe he was getting pretty good at this flirting thing.

 **AN: Short chapter this time, wanted to clear up Ochako's arc. It there was going to be more to it. But the tone didn't set anywhere near where I wanted it to so I split it into two. Next chapter should be pretty... well interesting. Again. Sorry for the long rate and the sub-par chapter.**


	11. Chapter 11

"Don't stop."

That look in her eyes told him all he needed to know and then some, her face was flushed, with every one of her hot and heavy breaths encouraged him. The way her smile broke out from her lip bite was something only he would see, the most beautiful form of her laid bare before him writhing and moaning under him, and a look of more in her eyes. Her arms were above her head, twisting, and grabbing, driven only by desire.

"Keep going."

She moaned, long, eyes fluttering, back arching, smiling winning, her pale skin - exposed by the bright post morning light that was drifting in from her windows - all but glowed with the light sheen of sweat that was covering both of them. It was easy to lose himself, to her touch, to the rhythm, to the pleasure, to just her in general, like he was teetering on oblivion in every direction, making his heart race, blood all but roaring through his body, screaming her name.

Her legs flew up around his waist, pulling him in tight as she began to scream, but was silenced by their lips meeting. The kiss was a mess, sloppy, and very hot, that ended with her biting his lip before she fell back down onto the bed, her shoulders acting as support while her legs kept their hips entwined.

"That's it." It was breathed more than it was spoken, her voice lost to the sound of her panting and moaning. "More. Don't stop."

With the slightest touch, she would react, magnifying the effect and sending it right back towards him, and demanding more. He grabbed exposed breast that despite the effect of gravity still remained large enough to fill his hand, in a softness that was unique to Nejire's body, every place of her body was just so much fun to touch.

She moaned, her hips grinding against his in a frantic manner, a few cute squeaks that he loved but she hated came out as she bit one of her fingers. She stopped thrusting, and he leaned down to kiss her, pushing her deeper into the pool of pleasure they were making, all while renewing his own motions with a second - or was it third? - wind that gave him so much virulent vigor.

"Yes." She writhed, biting his lip and refusing to let go of his face for more than a second. "I'm so close Izuku I'm so close. Keep going. Keep going." She frantically whispered between kisses her hands digging their way through his messy hair, pulling, grabbing, and exciting him all over again.

He could feel her tightening, he could feel her every movement. Drawing him in with her to that wonderful ending that in so many ways was just the beginning. This was by far, his favorite way to wake up in the morning and greet the day. No doubt Nejire would agree. No wonder she wanted him to stay over so often.

They separated briefly, her lips lingering, as their motions began to slow. She smiled eyes looking right at him.

Something banged on the front door hard enough to make the windows in Nejire's room rattle.

"Nejire!" A male's voice boomed, cracking and grating against his nerve. Already the person was on his nerves. Maybe if they ignored them they'd go away. More banging. Louder this time. "Nejire!"

She stopped moving. The color drained from her face, and her arousal chasing its tail. A look he'd seen hints of appeared on her face - one that he hated seeing - only a thousand times more expressive. The expression she wore, bore no signs that she had ever smiled before.

"No," She mutter, pulling herself into a ball. Fear was something that he had seen many times as a hero. But this was that rare form of fear that lingered after someone. Dread.

And the cause of it was currently banging on the front door.

He stood from their bed, a breath all it took to dispell what little of his own arousal had persisted from Nejire's terrified look. In its absence, he did not find annoyance or raw hot anger, instead, all that remained was the simple desire to get it over with.

Once his pants were on, he looked back at Nejire, now curled up in the covers, looking at him with red poofy eyes. When he played this scenario in his head. In the event that he actually met her monsters, he asked her if he could take care of it. Nejire was capable as a hero and as a woman - the whole adult thing was still up in the air - but, now that he found himself facing the problem in real life.

Asking just didn't seem right. He was a hero after all. And being a hero meant meddling.

He smiled at her. Should he kiss her to reassure her? No, that didn't seem right. Instead, he grabbed her hand for just a moment. "I'll be right back."

"Kay," Nejire nodded, her shaking stopped for just a moment. Then resumed when his new favorite person banged on the door again.

"Open up Nejire! I know you're in there!"

He half stomped to the door, finding that mellow spot where his mind was clear. He wasn't going to shout, he wasn't going to open the door and punch. He was going to open the door casually, and talk to the person. Then see if he could send them to mars, without the rocket.

When he opened the door, what he saw wasn't really what he expected. He had pictured some tall muscular man that was close to him in stature. Perhaps someone with a quirk or something that made them stand out. Instead, he was greeted by someone that while they were in good shape just seemed so unbelievably average.

The man wore a suit and tie, a watch strapped to his list, his black hair was flat and short, with wide shoulders. He looked every bit the salaryman on his day off. For half a second he wondered if this was who he thought it was. "Uhh, who are you?"

"Me?" The man's voice cracked as he tried to look past him into the house. "I'm Nejire's fucking boyfriend. That's who. Now, how the fuck are you?"

Nope. This was who he thought it was. But, as a hero, he couldn't just go around punching civilians into orbit. Even if it was justified. Maybe Nejire has a restraining order on him? Should have asked. Maybe Fuck Face knew?

"Oh, well that's awkward because I'm Nejire's current boyfriend." He forced a smile, it was easy, just picturing figuring out how far he could throw this jackass.

Fuck Face sneered, "The hell you are, now get out the way, I'll have you know I can make your life a living fucking hell if you don't leave now."

Somehow he had a really hard time believing that. But at the same time, he really couldn't punch the man, mostly because he doubted he could pull his punch enough to not cause immediate death. Downsides of super strength.

Instead, he stood int he way, placing a single hand out to stop Fuck Face from taking a single step into the house. But maybe if he did that could be considered intrusion and he could probably argue that he was just on patrol when Nejire's home got broken into. Then punch him.

He kept the smile on his face. "No."

Fuck Face, just rolled his eyes, pulling out an expensive looking phone. "Do you have any idea who I am?"

"Nope. Do you know who I am?"

"A moron?"

Oooh, he was clever.

"Look, I don't have time to deal with your roided out ass, that stupid, slut, has been running away for way too long. Bring her out here so I can deal with her, lord knows how much of a hit my reputation, bad enough she didn't learn her lesson when I posted those photos of her online, I guess its just not that fucking important to-"

"Leave." His voice was flat, even, and betrayed the growing rage of pissed the fuck off that he was. "Leave, now."

"Clearly you're a fucking idiot! Do you have any idea who I am?" The man tapped at his phone barely even paying attention to him now. "Look, I'll be nice. Nejire is worth a lot to me. How much is she worth to you? A million? Two? Meeting your favorite pro hero? I can get you dinner with fucking Explosion King. Just name your price and fuck off."

Dinner with Kacchan sounded like a good idea, but it'd probably be absolutely terrible. And somehow, he really doubted that Bakugo would work for a guy like this. Let alone stay int he same room as him. But he was the number four pro hero right now. Sure the numbers were shifting constantly and there were some days where he was higher than others, but he was constantly in the top five.

"My name is Izuku Midoriya. I'm the pro hero Deku. I don't want your money, and I have Bakugo's number, now leave. Or I'll let him know that you think you own him." Katsuki wouldn't kill him, he was actually fairly good with his PR these days, but, he'd probably still make this guy hate life.

The color drained from the man's face and he stopped tapping on his phone.

"There is nothing you can give me. You can't buy me. You can't scare me. All you can do is make me feel pity for you." he placed one hand on each of his shoulders, smiling at him as he tried to find the right words to say. Intimidation was not his forte. Honesty however was. "Leave now and never come back, or I will change your world."

Honestly, he had no idea what that meant. Maybe he'd throw him to mars, maybe he'd punch him into next week. Really depended on this guys next move.

"You. you. You'll regret this!" Fuck Face squeaked, his face growing redder by the moment.

"Nah," He shook his head, heading back inside. He offered him one last smile, a genuine one that just felt right at that moment. "You will."

The door locked with a click. He stared at the lock for a moment, gathering his thoughts waiting to see if he would try anything. Did he do that right? Should he have done more? Was there anything else he could have done? He really wanted to punch him. He really really wanted to punch him. Maybe he should have left him on some really tall building. Maybe he should have done something more than intimidate him.

What if he came back? How did he find Nejire? Was she running from him? What was the story? There was so much he didn't know, and so much of that didn't matter. Nejire was terrified of him that was reason enough. Should he talk her into getting a restraining order? That might be difficult if Fuck Face was a influential as he claimed.

Once he was certain he took his weight off the door, unable to find the right way to breath. Part of him wished he was a criminal, but that wasn't the case unless he tried to force his way in or tried to hurt Nejire. He really wanted to punch him.

Nejire stood at the corner, peering out from behind it as she clutched the blanket around her. She wasn't crying, but her cheeks were still stained by a few dry tears. Somehow, she looked both delicate and strong. With three large steps, he ran to her, pulling her into his arms and hugging her tightly.

She squeezed him just as hard, bury her head into his chest, her breath came in rapid succession as though she was shivering.

"I'm sorry," she muttered into him.

He ran her hand through her hair while rubbing the small of her back. "Why are you sorry?"

"I should have told you."

"Do you wanna talk about it now?"

"No," she paused, pushing up to look at him for a moment. "But. I should."

They sat down on the ground, her all but sitting on his lap, one of her hands touching his face while he held her waist, chin resting on her shoulder. Her breathing was calm and even.

"I don't think I ever actually broke up with him," she muttered, staring at the entrance way to the kitchen. "At least, not with words. I kind of ran away from him more than anything, threw out my phone, stopped checking facebook, only got a burner phone to talk to Yuyu, Mirio, and Tamaki. But I moved to a new town and tried to live there for a whole. Then he found me. So I moved again. And Again. And again. I did night patrols so I could still help people but wouldn't really be seen. Then I bumped into you and-" She waved her hand about, blowing a raspberry and laughing. "Well, you know how that went. You were like hot, funny, nice, and I just kind of felt at ease with you."

"So, why'd you run away from him? He didn't hurt you did he?" He found one of her hands entwining their fingers, closing his eyes to digest all this. "Is it because of the photos?"

"Oh, so you know about those?" She sighed, thumbing his hand. "Not that it matters too much if you see them, but no, I think those were his way of punishing me for running away or something. It kind of just made me happier in my choice to leave him."

"How'd you even end up with him?"

"Normally, he's not an asshole. Or at least. I didn't think he was at the start. He was motivated, he had money, he was a self-made politician and business man. He was my primary sponsor for two years. But when he started to consider running for a bigger office, he started to insist on things." She squeezed his hand. "He told me that he wanted to marry me before the election cycle and for me to become a higher ranking hero because it would look good, but then during the election, for me to get pregnant to boost ratings even more."

She sighed, leaning back into him. "I said I wasn't ready, and I began to realize that he didn't really love me. That I was just something to promote his agenda, to make him look better. I tried to talk to him about it, but he started screaming, threatening me, calling me useless, a slut, and all those other things. He felt like he owned me."

"So I left, at first I thought everything was fine and he got the message. Then he found me. So I left again. Then he posted the photos, that was fun, almost thought about posing for a magazine or something just to tell him to fuck off. But, then I realized that he was finding me by people taking photos of me. Somewhere along the line, I started being afraid of getting my picture taken of me because he might find me."

"He didn't hurt you did he?"

She snorted, flexing her arm into his cheek, and shaking her head. "No, if he did I probably would have kicked his ass. But he's manipulative. Made me question my self-worth. Which is really weird cause hello! I'm Nejire Hado! I'm like the top female hero!"

"And a badass," He whispered into her ear, before pressing his cheek against hers. His butt was starting to feel cold on the floor.

"Yep! Exactly," She nodded, moving to kiss him lightly. "I'll have to face him someday. But, thank you for coming to the rescue Izuku. I'm really happy I'm with you."

"Me too, so are you going to move again? Cause I kind of like your apartment, its close, nice, has a good view, a great bed. Should probably put some fish in that fish tank though."

She turned around, facing him directly for the first time, arms around his neck. "Hey, this is kind of an awkward time to ask this question, but I've been thinking about it for a while, like at least a month when we saw Ochako off. But, when's your lease up?"

"Uhh, like six months?" More or less at any rate. "Why?"

"Oh, darn. Cause if it was running out I was going to ask if you just wanted to officially move in." She shrugged leaning forward, hugging him softly. "I mean you basically live here half the time and I get bored and lonely when I don't have you to bug."

"How about I ignore my lease and move in anyway?"

"I think I'd like that a lot."

 **AN: Happy Valentine's day! I really hated the last chapter and I felt bad that it only got like... 8 reviews so instead of being sad about it I got excited to write this chapter because holy fuck was it fun to write. Also look, a pseudo lemon!**

 **Anyways, review please, it means a lot! (Supporting me on Ko - fi / Yojimbra means more though if you want to throw money at a starving writer!)**


	12. Chapter 12

"Would you quit fussing?" Nejire pulled at the sharp red tie that was Shoto's (or rather Momo's) requirement for him being the Best man. Her face twisted as she fiddle with his tie, fussing with it far more than he was before letting it drop and pressing it against his chest. It was straight. Kind of.

"There!" Nejire spun away from him, she was wearing a deep red dress that clashed with her bright blue hair. It was modest enough not to have her stand out from the other women and bridesmaids but still managed to have as much personality as Nejire did. It was also red that was one of the colors of the wedding, the others being white and black.

Whether or not it was intentional that the colors matched the couples hair colors or if it was just a coincident had evaded him.

A large white flower that was made with a whole lot of petals was snapped into Nejire's hair, just above her right ear. She looked like a classy forest faerie. She spun on her feet, pushing her dress down so it didn't float up to much, before stopping and wiggling her hips to make her dress swish about her legs, exposing the simple red heels she was wearing.

A greater mystery was how girls walked in those things.

"How do I look?" she asked for the third time since she put the dress on. She spun again, this time looking behind her like she was a dog chasing her tail. "Is it too much? Do I still fit in it? Ohh, do you think I should wear something less flashy? I don't want to upstage Momo! Do you think I should just wear a black dress? What about a white one? Wait can I wear the white one?"

She asked for the fifth, second, third, first, and first time. Her face twisting from a smile to a frown over and over again. Her hands flying around her dress tugging and pulling at places, even doing the thing where she jiggles her boobs so that they sit right in her bra twice. He wasn't sure if that was for his benefit or not.

"Are you asking me?" he asked pointing a finger to himself. "Because I don't think I'm a good judge of that."

She pouted, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him. "Oh, and why's that?"

In his defense, she walked right into this one. "Because to me no matter what you'll be the most beautiful woman out there."

Nejire's face turned bright red, her lips twisting into something that was half pout half smile. It lasted for all of two seconds before she made a high-pitched noise and slammed down onto the hotel room bed feet kicking in the air.

"You did not just say that!" She half laughed half screamed into the bed.

"But I did," He took two steps forward, sliding his arms along the bed beside her. Pushing a bit of her hair out of the way, he found the bare nape of her neck and kissed her lightly. And again, and again, until she at long last turned to face him, twisting her body so that she could kiss him, it was slow and tender. "Besides, you know you like it."

He pushed off the bed smiling at her red face, her lips twisted into a pout. "Yea, well you're just lucky that you're hot! And super handsome! And you're like so going to be the number one hero this year! I can feel it in my bones!"

For some reason, she presented her elbow to him.

"You think so? I don't think-"

"Seriously?" Nejire fell back onto the bed bouncing twice and kicking all of her limbs up. It was amazing how her dress still managed to stay in place. "We've done more patrols since we got together than anybody else, not to mention crime rate in and around our city is so low, you've been on the news at least seven times, and last week you jumped into a giant slime monster and punched your way out! I'm still finding slime!"

"I'm still finding slime in our costumes."

"My point exactly. Oh, and let's not forget the two burning buildings you literally ran into and dragged people while pulling an All Might and saying 'Never fear for I am here!' Like that's plagiarism, honey." Nejire rolled into a sitting position, her long blue hair was a few brush strokes from being back in place. "I don't think anybody else can match that. Maybe Bakugo but he's as good at pissing people off as he is at saving them."

"Well, what about you, you've been around for everything, what makes you think you won't be number one?" Somehow, in the past six months that goal, while still in the back of his mind, had become less important. He was happy with his life, happier than he'd been in a while. Being a hero had rarely felt like work, it was never something that he dreaded. But with Nejire in the picture, he found even the worst aspects of their job fun.

Except for the press, once they had found out that they were dating that was all they ever wanted to talk about. It was probably Fuck Face's doing.

Nejire shrugged, bouncing up to her feet. "Who knows, I guess we'll have to find out next month when they announce the rankings. But I can feel it! You're totally going to be the number one hero this time around!" She gasped slapping her cheeks. "Wait! What if I'm number two! We'd be the top two heroes and we'd literally be a super couple! Oh my goodness!"

Her arms fell to her side. "Do you think they'd give us a car?"

"You can drive?" She could fly, why would she ever need to drive anywhere?

"Nope," she popped, bouncing and spinning around to smile at him. "But don't you think it'd be fun to take a cruise down to the beach? Or something fun like that?"

"I'm getting the feeling you just want to go to a beach."

"Well, now I do! Thanks for putting that on my mind!" She pointed a finger at him with one hand on her hip. "Izuku as your girlfriend I demand that you take me to a beach! One that isn't in Japan!"

"So a vacation?"

Her eyes went wide and she nodded slowly. "Yes! We deserve a vacation that lasts more than one or two days!"

"That actually sounds like a good idea." He gestured to the door, "But first, I think we have a wedding to attend to."

"Oh, right we do!" She hummed swaying from side to side as they made their way out of the hotel. "Be sure to relax Izuku, you didn't practice all of yesterday being the best man for nothing."

He was more worried about the speech.

XXXX

There was nothing to be nervous about. All he had to do was walk out the door take three steps, turn left, hook arms with one of the bridesmaids and walk down the aisle, turn left again, and take his place right next to Shoto. From there he would wait, smiling off into the distances until Momo appeared and the hearing would begin.

Then when they asked for the rings, he would.

The ring! Where was the ring! How on earth did he lose the ring already! Did he ever have the ring? Pocket? No. Other pocket? Also no!

"Psst," A soft feminine voice, called from the waiting room, drawing the attention of himself and the two groomsmen - Shoto's elder brother Natsu, and their old classmate Tenya - to the door. It was one of the bridesmaids. Another former classmate of theirs. Itsuka Kendo who still had her hair off to one side, but instead of a messy orange ponytail it was a neatly tied braid that draped off her shoulder. Her red dress was short, tight, and minimal. She waved him over. "Izuku, come here."

Why were they whispering?

He took three quick steps over to her. "What's up Kendo?"

"One second, I ended up taking both." She pulled out a ring, offering it to him. "Here, sorry if I worried you."

He couldn't help but sigh into a smile. "Don't worry about it, I'm just happy I didn't lose it, wouldn't want to be the one to ruint he wedding."

She gave him a thumbs up and nodded. "Don't worry about it, just do like we practiced, we're starting in five minutes so bed ready."

Those five minutes passed in a heartbeat.

Seriously if he was this nervous just standing around waiting for someone else's wedding on on earth was he going to survive his own?

The music started, and he was out the door, taking those three steps and coming face to face with Itsuka once again. They hooked arms, walking towards the Alter where Shoto stood his half white half red hair was done in the same lazy style it always was.

Everything felt slow and fast, the groomsmen and the bridesmaids were in place, the guests were in their seats, he could see Nejire, smiling at him with those deep blue eyes like he was the one in the spotlight.

It was because of her that he was able to smile and relax. Until he saw Momo and instantly pictured Nejire in a wedding dress. It was far to soon to start thinking about that! Even if it felt like they were heading that way.

His eyes flashed to Nejire once more. She was looking at Momo, then for a brief moment she returned his gaze, her smile all but ensaring him and pulling him down towards her.

Momo arrived at the Alter.

Everything was starting.

His nervousness vanished.

But all he could think about was Nejire wearing a wedding dress.

XXXX

Next month, he was the number one Hero.

In two months he opened his own branch and Nejire was his partner.

A year later, and he was engaged to Nejire.

 **AN: The End. Well the actual end. Last chapter was more or less the end for me. I really feel like I should have ended it there instead of here. I'm sorry for another bad end, but in my mind I finished this fic last chapter so my heart just wasn't in it.**

 **Anyways, the next character I paired Izuku with appeared in this chapter even if it was briefly.**

 **If you don't hate me for my terrible ending consider donating to my Ko fi! Ko-fi / Yojimbra ! But if you don't its cool. Anyways, until next time!**


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